Out of the Dark
by These Guilty Pleasures
Summary: Harry gets left behind whe he's six years old and Remus is the one who takes him in. But Remus doesn't know what he's gotten himself into. It's not easy to rebuild a family after five years of missing people. AU, mentions of Dursley Abuse, NO SLASH
1. Getting Off the Train

**A/N: Hello everybody! Er… right, so you all read the summary, at least I think you did, so you should already know this is an AU story where Remus takes Harry in and they do all that bonding type stuff that we all just love so much :D **

**So here are some things you should probably know: Harry's six years old, the Dursleys abandoned him at Mrs. Figg's house after he showed signs of magic and now Remus is going to take care of him. All of that is sort of explained in the little italicized prologue-ish thing at the beginning, but in case that's not very clear, I thought I'd mention it here. **

**There will be mention of abuse from the Dursleys, so take that as a warning. **

**This story should cover all kinds of things from emotional problems, trust issues, and physical scars to dealing with nightmares and colds and all the other wonderful things that come along with having a six year old. Be patient with me though, because it might take a while to get to the part you like. Hopefully you'll like it all, though ;) **

**Okay, so to those few people out there who have read my other story, Almost, this is a bit different for me because I usually like to keep things as close to the plot line as possible and am a stickler for detail, but I really wanted to write this, so I can live AU for a while. I'm going to try to update this more than Almost because it's got more of a plotline and also I've got more motivation right now. **

**Alright, I'm done babbling. This is my first shot at AU, and I would absolutely love it if anybody reading this would give me a review! I really could use feedback on this story and it would keep me going! ;) **

**Also, THANK YOU SO MUCH to Morning Lilies, who is my Beta for this story! I've never had a BETA before and it's thanks to her that this made it to publishing! You should go check out her stories if you a member of the Remus Lupin (or James Potter) fan club, as we both are! Anyways, happy reading! **

_Dear Professor Dumbledore,_

_I think something has happened. The Dursleys left Harry with me as they normally do whenever they go anywhere that might be enjoyable, but they haven't returned. Harry's Uncle said they would be gone over-night visiting his sister, but it's been three days and I haven't heard a word from them. What's more, the house phone is cut off and when Harry and I went over to get some more things for Harry, I found the house completely empty. I don't know what is going on, but I don't like it._

_Yours most sincerely _

_Arabella Figg _

_XXX_

_Dear Arabella,_

_I was notified that Harry showed his most prominent sign of magic last week. The Ministry notified me that he re-grew his hair overnight. I'm afraid that it may have frightened his aunt and uncle off for I know that they are not very keen on the idea of magic. I am currently working on the situation. As you understand it is very important that Harry stay with them, but since they are currently nowhere to be found, and I believe it will take some time to track them and then convince them to take the boy in again, I think it will be best to find Harry another home for the time being. I believe there is someone more than willing to care for the child until his relatives can be convinced to take him in again. I will be speaking to him shortly and will send you the details once they have been decided upon. _

_My humble gratitude for all that you have done,_

_Albus Dumbledore _

…

Remus Lupin stood anxiously at the edge of the platform, twisting his threadbare gloves in his hands and staring with a kind of pained intensity at the place where the next train would appear. He barely seemed to notice the crowd pushing past him in every direction. For the past half hour he'd paced the platform, occasionally sinking down onto a bench only to leap up again immediately and continue pacing.

He could only remember being so nervous once in his life: the morning he'd climbed aboard the Hogwarts Express for the first time. His knees were trembling just like they had all those years ago, his palms were clammy and his stomach was fluttering restlessly as the seconds ticked down to that train appearing.

On that train was a little boy. He would be six and a half now, Remus thought. It seemed incredible that the little squealing bundle so fascinated by cardboard boxes could already be walking and talking in complete sentences and learning to read and write. But it also seemed incredible to Remus that it had only been five years since… all of that… had happened. Sometimes it felt like only a moment ago that James and Lily and Peter were going out for a drink with him. (He refused to think about the fifth person that would have been in their group. He wasn't letting the traitor destroy his memories, too.) But then he would blink and it would all come rushing back to him, the funerals and memorial services and terribly empty, grief-stricken years, and it would seem as though a lifetime had passed…

The train came screeching onto the platform and Remus jumped, all thoughts blown out of his mind. This was it. In just a moment Remus would be able to see him. What then? Panic overtook him. What was he supposed to do with a little kid? For all that Dumbledore and Molly Weasley had said to him, for all the books he'd read and planning he'd done, Remus felt completely inept for this job. And then what if the kid hated him? Remus couldn't blame him if he did. Remus had basically abandoned him for the past five years, hadn't he? What if the boy didn't want him anymore? What if he ran away or shouted or…

Remus was on the verge of pulling his own hair out with all the terrifying what-ifs when the train doors opened and people began spilling out. And then he spotted them. An old woman clutching a carpet bag in one hand and the tiny, mittened hand of a little boy in a bright red coat in the other was tottering off the train.

"Mrs. Figg!" Remus called above the noise before his voice could fail him.

He raised a hand over his head and waved to get her attention. The woman turned her head, spotted him, and nodded, smiling. Then she knelt down and said something to the boy. Remus could only see glimpses of his bright red coat through the crowd bustling around them. A moment later Mrs. Figg popped back up again and pushed her way across the platform.

And then they reached him.

"Hello, Remus," Mrs. Figg said over the noise of the station, smiling slightly. "It's been a long time, hasn't it?"

"It certainly has," Remus mumbled, thinking with a pang of the last order meeting. He took the hand Mrs. Figg offered and smiled in return.

"Now then, I'm sure you'd much rather be chatting with this fine young man than with a nutty old lady," Mrs. Figg said cheerfully, though Remus caught a knowing look in her eyes before she looked away.

She tugged gently on Harry's hand, urging him forward a step. "This here, is Harry Potter, of course," she announced with a smile. "Harry, this is Remus Lupin, the man I told you about, who's to be looking after you now."

Heart hammering madly, Remus swallowed and looked down for the first time in five years at James and Lily's son. He was tiny, Remus thought, made to look even smaller by the puffy red coat. But even so, Remus had to stifle a gasp at how familiar his features were. He could see James so clearly in Harry's thin face, in the wild, jet black tufts of hair poking out from beneath his knit cap. But it was Lily's eyes gazing up at him from behind round glasses. Those bright green eyes James had been so proud to see on his son. His hat covered up his forehead, but Remus knew that there was a livid scar there that hadn't been the last time he'd seen the boy.

Harry peered up at Remus shyly, pressing himself closer to Mrs. Figg's side so that he was half hidden behind her. Remus smiled kindly at him, kneeling down to be on a level with him.

"Hello, Harry," he said quietly, offering a hand for Harry to shake. Harry only shrank back, further behind Mrs. Figg.

"He's awfully shy," Mrs. Figg explained, catching the disappointment and bewilderment Remus was fighting to keep off his face.

"That's alright," Remus replied, gathering himself quickly. He supposed it was to be expected, given the circumstances. Dumbledore hadn't exactly explained very much, but from what he had, it didn't seem that Harry had had much in the way a loving family. It filled him with both anger at Lily's sister and guilt for never bothering to check on Harry himself.

"We'll just have to get to know each other so there won't be a reason for shyness anymore," he told Harry kindly. "Has he got any bags?" he added to Mrs. Figg, standing up again.

Something flashed in the old woman's face, but she replied as placidly as ever. "I bought him some things for the journey, but apart from them, no, he hasn't got anything. Dumbledore spoke to you about clothes and such things… ?"

"Yes, yes," Remus said quickly. "I've got it all back at the house, but I just wondered if he had any personal things with him."

Mrs. Figg pulled a picture book, a coloring book, and a pack of crayons out of her bag. Remus took them, looking curiously at the stationary muggle pictures.

"It's nearly noon," Mrs. Figg said. "My train doesn't leave for another two hours, what do you say to grabbing a bight?"

"Sounds like a fine idea," Remus agreed, tucking the books and crayons into his coat. "What do you think, Harry? Are you hungry?"

Harry only stared at him with wide eyes.

"I'm sure he could do with some lunch," Mrs. Figg answered when Harry stayed silent. "We haven't had anything since early this morning, have we lamb?"

"There's a café up the street that's rather good," Remus offered. "They've got the best hot chocolate I've ever tasted," he added, smiling down at Harry, but Harry was busy studying his scuffed sneakers.

"That sounds lovely for such a chilly day," Mrs. Figg said happily, and so Remus turned and lead the way out of the station and up the street.

**A/N: Please Review! Please? If no one's interested in this, I'll just write it for myself, but if people want to read it, tell me and I'll post updates! :D**


	2. Good Byes

**Disclaimer: I forgot this on the last chapter, but I definitely don't own any of this. It's all JK Rowling's and I'm just changing it around a bit. If you read my profile you'll see quite clearly that I am not JK Rowliing. **

**A/N: Thank you so much to everyone who's already reviewed! Oh my gosh, four people in like two hours! And thanks to everyone who's favorite and put this story on alert! You guys are great! Okay, so I know, fast update, huh? Well I probably won't be this fast most of the time, but I'll try. I've got the night off from babysitting which hardly ever happens, so that's why I'm so speedy :D **

**Anyway, this chapter is from Harry's perspective. I think the perspectives will switch from Remus to Harry, but probably not regularly. The next chapter should be from Harry's POV too. I might even get crazy and switch things up during the chapters :D But whatever! I figured I'd post this with the first chapter because it's not very exciting. Hopefully after this things should start to pick up. **

**Also, thanks again to Morning Lilies, my wonderful BETA who got this back to me really quick so I could update fast! **

Harry stared at the scuffed tiled floor beneath his sneakers, clutching Mrs. Figg's hand as if he'd never let it go. He was listening hard to the adults' conversation above his head, trying to figure out this Lupin person. Mrs. Figg had told him all about this man, of course. She'd told him Remus Lupin was his parents' old friend and that he was a very kind man and he wanted to take care of Harry, since his aunt and uncle were off somewhere else.

Mrs. Figg acted like Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia and Dudley were just on some long vacation and Remus Lupin was going to babysit him for a while, but Harry knew better. Harry had gone with Mrs. Figg and seen the empty house. He'd actually seen all the boxes being packed, but he didn't ask why because Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon didn't like being asked questions and Harry was not curious enough to risk it. Harry knew the Dursleys didn't want him anymore. He didn't think they'd ever really wanted him to begin with, but after what happened last week, Harry seemed particularly unwanted.

Harry shivered slightly thinking about last week. He hadn't meant to do it and he still didn't know how he'd _managed _to do it, but he had never seen his aunt and uncle so angry. Aunt Petunia, screeching about how much money they wasted on haircuts for Harry to look like a mangy street kid, had grabbed a pair of kitchen scissors and sheared off all Harry's hair herself, except for his bangs, which she left to hide the scar on his forehead. Harry had been terrified to go to school the next day. Nobody liked him as it was, Dudley made sure of that, But he couldn't even imagine what it would be like to go to school bald. Everyone would laugh and point at him and Dudley and his friends would have even more reason to chase him and pick on him.

But when he woke up the next morning, all his hair had grown back. At first, Harry was relieved, thinking it had all been some horrible dream, but when Aunt Petunia came to get him up and screamed loud enough to send Uncle Vernon thundering down the steps with only one sock on and still buttoning his shirt, Harry knew he'd rather go to school bald than whatever was coming next.

So the Dursleys didn't want him anymore and Mrs. Figg must not want him either. Harry didn't mind much that he didn't have to stay at Mrs. Figg's house. He liked her more than anyone else he knew, but her house made him sneeze. Harry wasn't sure if it was all the cats or just the funny smell. He hadn't noticed it until he'd had to stay there for more than just an afternoon, but he was glad to be out of there now. He wished she would stay with him where ever he was going to go though. Mrs. Figg was nice to him and there weren't a lot of people who were nice to him.

But this Remus bloke didn't seem too bad. Of course Harry knew better than to trust someone who seemed nice out in shops and restaurants and places where there were lots of people. Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon seemed nice around lots of people, but they weren't that way when it was just Harry around.

"Over this way, please," a woman with an apron and a pretty smile said, leading Harry and the grown-ups to a table near the window. Mrs. Figg let go of Harry's hand and helped him out of his coat and hat and then lifted him up onto the chair between hers and Remus's. The woman plopped down two menus and then a sheet of paper and some crayons for Harry before bustling off to seat someone else.

Harry stared at the crayons in front of him. Was he supposed to color at the table too? It seemed like he was suddenly supposed to color everywhere. It's what Mrs. Figg had given him to do at her house and on the train. Harry had never been out to eat before. The Dursleys never took him. Aunt Petunia never let even Dudley have his art things out at the table. He decided to just leave them there until someone told him what he ought to be doing.

"So, what would you like to eat, Harry?" Remus asked, making Harry jump.

He raised his eyes to sneak a peek at Remus from behind his messy fringe. Remus was looking at him expectantly. Harry knew he had to answer and he scrambled to find the correct one.

"I'm not hungry," he said very quietly. It was what the Dursleys liked to hear anyway. Usually they didn't ask at all.

"Nonsense," Mrs. Figg said, patting his cheek. "You must be starved! We haven't had a thing since breakfast. How about I read the menu to you and you can pick what you like best."

So Mrs. Figg read off a list of food and then they asked him what he wanted again and Harry picked the first thing he could remember, uncomfortable with all the attention. He was very much relieved when Remus and Mrs. Figg went back to their conversation after he picked a meal.

Surreptitiously, he wound an arm around his tummy. It was feeling sore again and his back was hurting from bumping against the hard train seat all morning. He wanted to curl up somewhere where no one would watch him and hide, but he couldn't, of course. Harry listened to the adults talk to try to keep his mind off his aching body. They were going on about the food and about Remus's new job as a librarian and other things like that.

Then the smiling lady was back and Mrs. Figg told her what they wanted and she hurried off again.

Harry was stunned by the amount of food she set down in front of him when she came back. He was used to Dudley eating so much, but Dudley was much bigger than he was and Dudley wasn't a burden like Harry was. Harry wondered if the lady knew he was a burden. He wasn't exactly sure what a burden was, but it meant he was not aloud new clothes or lots of food or a room of his own and that people didn't like burdens much.

"Is that not what you wanted?" Remus asked, looking over at Harry, who had not touched his food yet.  
Harry jumped again and looked up at him, shaking his head quickly and mumbling, "No, it's fine." Tentatively, he reached out and snatched one of the French fries on his plate. He'd only ever gotten the burnt ones that Dudley didn't want before. The fresh one tasted wonderful. He took another.

Remus and Mrs. Figg chattered away as they ate and Harry listened simply because he was used to listening. They tried to engage Harry in their conversations, but Harry answered with only nods or shakes of the head or shrugs. He wasn't used to so many questions and wasn't sure what to do about them. Suppose he gave an answer they didn't like? Mrs. Figg was going to be leaving for her train after they finished eating and Harry didn't want to upset Remus on the very first day.

After a while, though, Harry began to feel sick. The Dursleys had never given him much food. They liked to keep him hungry better than fed. But he didn't want to waste anything. The teachers at school had gotten angry when kids would throw food away there and Harry supposed everyone would.

"You don't have to eat all of that if your full, lamb," Mrs. Figg told him when she noticed the slightly sick look on Harry's face.

He pushed his plate away with relief.

"Well, I suppose I'd better get back to the station," Mrs. Figg said rather resignedly half hour later.

She rose and swung her coat over her shoulders.

Remus stood too. "Then I suppose we'll be going home then."

Harry thought he heard nervousness in Remus's voice and he faltered over the word 'home'. Or maybe it was just him that was nervous, Harry thought as he slid obediently off his chair and began fumbling with the puffy coat Mrs. Figg had bought for him before they left for the train this morning. Harry wished more than ever that Mrs. Figg wasn't leaving when she bent down to help him with the zipper and then his mittens. It was what all the others mothers and grandmothers did for all his classmates, but nobody had ever bothered to help Harry before Mrs. Figg.

The three of them made their way out of the café and into the chilly afternoon.

"Good bye, Remus," Mrs. Figg said, shaking Remus's hand again. "I was glad to see you again. You're a fine young man and I'm sure you'll be just fine. No one better really."

She knelt down to peer into Harry's face one more time. "I know you'll be a good boy," she told Harry kindly. She took one of his hands and patted it with her own. "It'll be all right Harry, I promise. I'll miss you around my house, you know. I've gotten used to the company. But You'll like it with Remus, I know you will. Good bye darling."

She gave him one last pat on the hand and straightened up.

"Good bye then," Remus said rather awkwardly.

"Good bye," Harry whispered, so quietly he thought Mrs. Figg might not have heard him, but then she gave him another smile and he was pretty sure she had.

Mrs. Figg turned and tottered off back towards the train station and was soon swallowed up by the crowd.

"Shall we go home then?" Remus asked, reaching down to take Harry's hand so as not to lose him in the crowd.

Harry looked up at the man who was now supposed to be looking after him and nodded hesitantly, because that was obviously the right answer. But home meant away from other people. Harry felt his body grow tense as the man lead him towards a taxi and helped him climb in. What was going to happen to him now?

**A/N: I still love reviews! I'll probably be annoying and remind you at the end of every chapter, but they are my favorite things in the world (well, the virtual world :D). Also, feel free to give me any kind of suggestions or ideas or advice you have. I kind of know where this is going already, but there's room for more if you want to see something. :D **


	3. Going Home

**A/N: So I'm back! Yet another chapter up so soon! Like I said, don't get used to this. My parents are going to visit my aunt in Florida tomorrow which means me and Cole are in charge of the brood :D this should be fun! Anyway, what that means is not much time for me! Anyway, I hope you like this chapter! Hopefully I'll get some tough stuff in soon and keep on the lookout for a pole going up on my profile within the next couple chapters. I've got some decisions to make about this story! **

**Thank Morning Lilies who is an amazing Beta, by going onto her profile and reading and REVIEWING some of her stories. :D **

It seemed to be a long way to Remus's house. Harry pressed himself against the door, as far away from Remus as possible, and rested his head on the cool glass window. He kept all his concentration on keeping his lunch down, but the swerving taxi and his growing nerves were not on his side. He could feel Remus glancing awkwardly at him from time to time, but to his relief, the man didn't ask him any questions.

At long last the Taxi pulled to a stop and Harry heard Remus's door open. He forced his eyes open and straightened up, blinking out the window.

All he could see out his window were trees. A feeling of panic overtook as a vivid memory flashed across his mind: Uncle Vernon screaming that they ought to dump him in the woods like the vermin he was and tossing him bodily into the dark confines of his cupboard.

The door swung open and Remus reached towards him. Harry, the image of his uncle fresh in his mind, jerked away on instinct, forgetting about the seatbelt holding him in place.

"Sorry," Remus mumbled, not entirely sure what to make of the boy's reaction. "I forget you're big enough to do it yourself."

Harry was momentarily confused, but then he realized Remus had meant to unbuckle him. With slightly trembling hands, he released the seatbelt with a loud click and slid unsteadily out of the car. Remus offered him a hand and Harry took it because that's what he was supposed to do, telling himself that nice men didn't leave little boys out in the woods and that Mrs. Figg wouldn't lie to him.

The car pulled away and, with relief, Harry spotted what looked like a sort of cabin across the road, half hidden by trees and shrubs. He became aware that Remus was watching him anxiously, as if waiting for an opinion.

"Well, this is it," he said gesturing towards the cabin. "Home sweet home. I suppose you can't really see it properly from out here. Why don't we go in and get you settled?"

Remus set off across the road and down a rutted path that wound its way to the front door, Harry stumbling along behind him.

"It's a bit out of the way," he said apologetically, "And I haven't got a car yet…. "

Harry's foot caught on a root. He pitched forward, and Remus automatically caught him before he could hit the ground. Harry went instantly rigid in Remus's grip.

"Are you alright?" he asked, setting Harry on his feet again and taking in his white face and wide eyes with concern.

Harry didn't move. He could feel Remus's hand on his shoulders, unknowingly pressing against a large bruise. The dull ache seemed to serve as a reminder, and Harry squirmed out of his reach. Someone holding his hand he could do, but no more than that.

"Harry, what's wrong?" Remus asked quietly, slightly alarmed by the little boy's expression.

But Harry didn't answer, only looked back down at the ground.

Remus slowly extended a hand, but Harry didn't take it this time. Instead he jumped and scurried forward, stopping at the door. Remus followed, digging the barely-used key (he kept having to remind himself that Harry didn't know about magic yet and he didn't want to frighten the boy – even more, it seemed) out of his pocket and studying the bundled up little figure waiting patiently to the side.

The lock clicked ad the door swung open. "Well, welcome home, Harry," Remus said, feeling the nervousness arising again. Funny how the whole world seemed to hang on this little boy's opinion of everything.

Harry hesitated, glancing up at Remus to be sure he wasn't going to make him angry by going first. With an encouraging nod from the man, Harry cautiously crept across the threshold and peered around at the place he would be living in for who knew how long.

His first thought was it was nothing like Number Four Privit Drive, which was an automatic plus. It was not very large; Harry could see nearly every room from beside the front door. The wood floors were scuffed and worn, the furniture looked old, the paint was chipped in places and the curtains were thin and patched heavily. The only sorts of decorations were a few photographs on the walls and a painting of a castle above the fireplace. It was shabby, but clean and bright.

"Want a tour?" Remus asked, struggling out of his coat and hanging it on a peg beside the door.

Harry copied him, stretching up as high as he could to reach the pegs, but in the end Remus had to lift the coat the last few inches to hang it up.

"There's the sitting room, of course," Remus said, indicating the small room before them. "Over there is the dining room," he pointed to a spot behind the sofa where a scrubbed wooden table was visible, "and around the corner is the kitchen. Would you like to go up and check out your room?"

Harry nodded when Remus looked at him, wondering where he would be sleeping here. At Mrs. Figg's she'd made up a bed for him on the couch and of course at number four, he'd had his cupboard. Upstairs was where Dudley got to sleep because he wasn't a burden. Harry wondered if things were flipped around here.

He followed Remus up the stairs, which turned halfway up on a landing with a big window. Harry caught a glimpse of the surrounding trees and the edge of a sparkling pond. It was kind of pretty here, he supposed now that he wasn't afraid of being left all alone in the woods.

"The bathroom's at the end of the hall," Remus told him once they reached the second floor. "My rooms right across from it. If there's anything you need, you can come in and get me. And here's your room."

Remus moved a few steps down the hall and pushed open the only door left to be labeled. Harry trailed behind him, pushing down the excitement that had started to flutter in his chest. It seemed as though he was getting a whole _room _to sleep in, but Harry was too familiar with disappointment to dare expecting that.

He was, therefore, rather stunned when peaked around the door to see an entire bedroom decorated with blues and greens laid out before him. He moved a few steps further into the room, gazing opened-mouthed at everything. He looked quickly at Remus, who was leaning against the door, watching him with a small smile.

"This is for me?" he asked doubtfully.

"Sure is," Remus nodded, grinning a bit.

"All of it?"

"All of it."

Harry turned back to the room, taking in every detail. A twin bed was spread with a warm-looking quilt, a bedside table sat next to it holding a lamp and a clock and a small stack of picture books. A dresser stood in the corner topped with a little collection of toy cars and planes. A bookshelf sat in the corner laden with all kinds of books. There was a soccer ball in another corner that looked brand new and waiting for someone to kick it around. The walls were painted blue and bright pictures of dinosaurs and jungle animals were hung all around.

All his. He couldn't believe it. Harry had never had a single thin in his whole life and here he was with his very own bedroom and books and toys and clothes. A warm happy glow was seeping through him and for the first time Harry didn't suppress it just yet. He let himself be happy for just a moment before he tried to find the catch to all of this. Before Remus snatched it away and told him it was all only a joke, before he woke up back in his cupboard on Privit Drive and the dream faded away, Harry enjoyed that happy little glow.

Remus couldn't stop the satisfied smile that crept across his face as he watched Harry examining his new things with a look of utter fascination and wonder. Remus had never had much money, and it was one of the reasons he had been so nervous about taking Harry. Dumbledore's solution was to offer Remus a key to the Potters' vault in Gringotts so he could support Harry. Remus had refused, saying it was James and Lily's money and now Harry's and he wasn't taking Harry for the money anyway. But the problem still remained that his income was ify at best, so Dumbledore compromised by allowing Remus to access the vault only when he absolutely needed to. But that didn't stop the old man from sending a healthy amount of gold for Remus to get ready to take Harry. Hed needed to buy a whole new wardrobe and furniture and everything, after all.

The woman at clothing store had been very helpful. She had a son Harry's age and had been more than willing to give Remus tips about what to get for him. Remus only hoped that Harry would like it here. He hadn't had much of a home since Lily and James and Remus wanted more than anything to give him that.

He watched Harry hesitantly pick up one of the planes and examine it closely. Then, sneaking a quick peek at Remus from under his fringe as if to check that it was okay, he flew the plane in a quick circle. Remus watched as Harry stared down at the toy in his hands as if he couldn't believe he'd really just done that. Then a tiny grin broke across his face and he giggled.

The noise was soft and short, but it made Remus's heart flutter a bit and he thought it just might be the most wonderful noise he'd ever heard.

**A/N: so it ends on a happy note :D I actually intended on going a bit farther with this chapter but it seemed to end best here. I promise the story's only just beginning. It's not as simple as giving Harry a room, even if Remus would maybe like it to be. Sorry these chapters aren't very long. They might get longer as the story goes on, I don't really know. I hope very much that you all are enjoying this! :D Thanks so much for reading! So don't forget that review button! I have ideas of course, but like I said, I'm not opposed to suggestions too. You should tell me what you want to see next because it'll help me get the chapter out faster probably! :D thanks again!**


	4. Cats and Bruises

**A/N: We survived! Our weekend with our parents gone that is. There were only a few casualties (we will remember my favorite white blouse which fell to grape juice stains and the Zoe's etch-a-sketch with fond memories :D) I really ought to be writing a paper right now, but it's not due for a while so I thought I'd treat you all to a chapter. Hope you like it!**

**Warning: there is some descriptions of the injuries Harry has sustained from child abuse in this chapter. **

Remus watched Harry surreptitiously as he made dinner that evening. Harry sat cross-legged in a corner, bent over one of the puzzles Remus had bought for him.

There was something off about him that Remus could not quite place. He was too quiet for a six-year-old. From Remus's limited experience with children, six-year-olds were supposed to chatter away nonstop until you thought your ears would fall off. Harry had barely said two words all afternoon. It had not escaped Remus's notice either that Harry seemed to panic whenever Remus touched him, nor that he nearly jumped out of his skin at loud noises. He wasn't sure what that was all about, but the suspicions he kept pushing away were not good.

Harry had also been keeping an eye on Remus. All day as a matter of fact. He liked to know where people were. Harry didn't like surprises. The only surprises he had any experience with were not good ones.

Harry squinted at the colorful pieces laid out before him, diligently fitting them together to make the lion that was roaring on the top of the box. There were only a handful of pieces left to place and Harry could feel his excitement building. He had never gotten so far in a puzzle before; Dudley had always come along and stomped it to pieces.

He had just spotted a likely-looking candidate for the top corner when a loud, screechy yowl made him jerk backwards, smacking his head painfully against the corner of the shelf behind him. Next second a blur of gray fur went flying over the his head, landed splay-legged right in the middle of his puzzle, sending pieces flying, and streaked off under the table, its long tail smacking him roughly in the face.

Remus whipped around at the loud noise, the jar of spaghetti sauce he'd just emptied into a pot slipping between his fingers and smashing to the floor with a loud crash.

"Harry! Are you alright?"

Remus was across the kitchen in two strides, kneeling before the little boy. Harry had scrambled away from the shattered puzzle, pressing himself hard into the wall and holding his throbbing head where it had hit the shelf. When Remus made to reach out and scoop him up, Harry jerked away, huddling in the corner.

All of Harry's senses seemed to be cranked up to full as his heart thudded painfully and broken images and memories swept through his head. Pain, fear, they brought the familiar instincts before he could stop to think.

Remus watched him with increasing worry. The little boy looked like a frightened animal and Remus wasn't sure what to do.

"Harry, it's alright, you're alright," he said in a soothing voice, slowly edging towards him. "It was only my old cat. He's nothing to be afraid of. He cops a bit of an attitude sometimes, but he's a gentle sort, really. He won't hurt you."

As Remus's words reached him and Harry realized that nothing was baring down on him. Slowly, his heart rate began to return to normal, his muscles began to relax again. It was just a cat. Just a silly cat that had already run away. Feeling a bit stupid, Harry pushed himself up and peered cautiously in the direction the blur had fled. His head was still throbbing from its collision with the shelf, but Harry ignored it because Remus was watching him. It wasn't that bad, he told himself as his eyes watered and he bit his lip to stop from whimpering. He'd had worse, much worse.

"Are you alright?" Remus asked in concern.

Harry nodded, eyes darting to Remus. He looked down quickly, unaccustomed to the worry in the man's eyes. That was when he noticed his puzzle. It had been smashed back into all its pieces just as if Dudley had come and stomped on it himself. A lump rose in his throat and he hastily tried to swallow it. He'd never finished a puzzle before now, why should it make a difference? Dejectedly, he began throwing the shattered picture, which had been so close to being finished, back into the box.

Remus watched him, not sure what to do. He looked like he was about to cry and Remus was at a complete loss as to how to deal with it. He noticed Harry's hands shaking slightly.

"Come here,' Remus said, but made no move towards Harry this time. "Let's go find that ornery beast. I promise he's nothing to be afraid of."

Harry eyed him cautiously, but after moment pushed himself up and took a step closer. Encouraged, Remus stood up too and offered Harry his hand. Harry took it hesitantly and allowed Remus to lead him around the table and towards the couch where a log gray tail was poking out from under the skirt, twitching slightly. He watched Remus flop down and fish the cat out from under the sofa, rubbing his nose where the animal's tail had caught him.

"This," Remus said, pulling the loudly protesting thing out and holding him before Harry, "is Helios. Wondered in here one day and decided he liked it. I haven't been able to get rid of him since. He likes to make a lot of noise, but his bark his worse than his bite…er meow, I suppose."

Harry examined the fat gray cat sitting grumpily in Remus's arms.

"You can pet him," Remus offered, smiling.

Obediently, Harry reached out a hand an stroked the top of the cat's head with one finger. He could feel Remus watching him carefully, determined that Harry not be afraid of the animal. Harry held his breath because his nose had started to tickle like it did at Mrs. Figg's house and his eyes had started to burn.

"See? Gentle as a lamb."

He dropped the cat lightly to the carpet and stood up. "Dinner's nearly ready. I'd better go stir the sauce. If you go wash your hands we can get to eating."

Harry nodded and Remus smiled at him and headed back into the kitchen to pick up the glass from the jar he'd dropped and tend to the bubbling tomato sauce. The moment he was busy in the kitchen, Harry scrunched up his face and pinched his nose, trying hard not to succumb to that awful tickle. But it was no use.

"Hetchoo!" Harry sneezed as quietly as he could, burying his face in his elbow to muffle the noise.

He glanced nervously towards the kitchen, but Remus didn't seem to have heard. Pinching his nose to abate the lingering tickle, Harry hurried up the stairs and down the hall to the bathroom to do as Remus said and wash his hands. As soon as the door was shut, he let his head jerk forward, cupping his hands to catch the sneeze.

"Heh… Hetchsh! Hecchh! Echshih!"

Sniffling, Harry grabbed a piece of toilet paper and wiped his nose before turning on the faucet to wash his hands. He tried to tell himself it was only coincidence and that it wasn't the cat because it would be the worst thing to be allergic to Remus's pet. Remus would probably get sick of hearing him sneezing all the time and send him away like everyone else was doing. Or he'd lock him up in a closet like the Dursleys always did when they heard him sneezing or coughing. No, it could not be because of the cat.

When he'd dried his hands, Harry set off back down stairs. But apparently Helios had noticed his sneezing because there he was waiting at the top of the stairs. Harry stopped dead when he saw the gray fur ball, but Helios stretched and wound himself around Harry's legs, purring softly. Harry's hands flew to his face as his breathing began to hitch.

"Heh… heh…Hetcheh! Cheh!" Harry sniffled, rubbing his nose with one hand while reaching down to push the cat away with the other. "Go on, Helios, please?" he pleaded softly. "You're ma…heh…ma… making me…heh… sneeze, Hetcheh!"

The cat ignored him, stretching up on his back paws to rub his head into Harry's stomach. Pressing both hands over his face, Harry took a few steps back. "Cheh! Isheh… Hetcheh!"

"Harry! Dinner's on the table!" Remus called from downstairs.

Harry was just beginning to panic, trying to find a way around the cat, when Helios turned at Remus's voice and shot off down the stairs.

Breathing a sigh of relief, Harry rubbed his nose to get rid of the last tickle and headed cautiously down the stairs. To his further relief, Helios seemed to have taken refuge under the sofa again.

Okay, so it _was _cats that made him sneeze. He would just have to make sure that Remus never heard it. He had some practice with that at the Dursleys. It would be okay.

Harry pushed the noodles around his plate with his fork, staring blearily at the tomato sauce smears they made against the yellow ceramic. He didn't feel hungry at all. Lunch had been enough food to last him until dinner _tomorrow_ night. In fact, the smell of the hot meal was making him feel sick again. His body was achy from the train ride and slamming into that shelf and he'd had to pretend to drop his fork three times so he could dive under the table and sneeze without Remus seeing. He just wanted to go to bed and be by himself.

Remus thought Harry was about to fall asleep in his dinner. Smiling slightly, he threw his napkin down on his plate and said, "You must be awfully tired from all of this settling in business. If you're full, why don't we go up stairs and get you ready for bed?"

Harry nodded and gratefully slid off his chair.

Remus had to stop himself from scooping Harry up and carrying him as, walking behind him, he watched the little boy stagger up the stairs, crawling u the last half on hands and knees. He seemed utterly exhausted.

Remus pushed the door open to Harry's room and pulled out a pair of blue pajamas patterned with yellow rubber duckies for him.

"Here you are, young man," he said, handing the pajamas over. "Why don't you trot along to the bathroom and change and brush your teeth. I've put a blue toothbrush and some toothpaste in there for you; they're by the sink. When you're all finished, you can pick out a book for me to read to you if you like."

Remus was a little surprised at how _parental _that little speech seemed. It was extremely odd to hear his own voice giving instructions like that. And even stranger to see them fallowed, he thought as Harry accepted the pajamas ad stumbled tiredly toward the bathroom.

Harry shut the door and sluggishly began to tug the scratchy sweater Mrs. Figg had picked out for him over his head. When he'd pulled off his jeans too, he took a breath and heaved himself up onto the counter to examine his reflection up close.

Angry red welts criss-crossed his torso, most heavily concentrated on his back with only a few on his chest and stomach. Dark bruises blossomed on his arms and back, making his pale skin look as if it were splotched with smudges of dirt. The fresh injuries covered a layer of pale, white scars and a burn mark that had long-since healed. His legs were smudged with bruises and the occasional stray welt, too.

It was a terrible sight. But Harry was ignorant of the tragedy of his reflection. He was too used to it. He leaned forward, examining the injuries critically, wincing as he pressed lightly on the bruises. They seemed to be fading. He hoped they'd hurry up. If Remus saw them, he'd be in trouble because his uncle had told him never ever to tell.

Harry slid down from the counter and scrambled into his ducky pajamas. He hastily brushed his teeth with a toothbrush that had little plastic goldfish floating in the see-through handle (he thought this might just be his favorite thing that Remus had given him), and headed back to his bedroom (_his bedroom!_).

Halfway there, Helios sauntered past, taking care to wrap himself around Harry's legs before slipping off down the stairs. Harry froze, holding his breath until the cat had gone. Sighing in relief, he took a step forward, but almost at once had to turn and bury his face in his sleeve as he sneezed.

"Bless you!"

Remus's voice made Harry freeze. Slowly, face burning, he looked around to see the man standing in his bedroom doorway, smiling kindly. He breathed a silent sigh of relief when he realized Helios was nowhere to be seen and promptly sneezed again.

"Bless you again," Remus said, smiling at the cute little noise Harry made when he sneezed. "Have you got a story in mind or are you too tired tonight?"

Harry rubbed his eyes with his palm of his hands, yawning. "I'm really tired, if that's okay?" he added timidly, not used to choices and not sure he liked them. They made him feel like he was taking a test.

"That is perfectly okay," Remus told him amiably. "Come on, I'll tuck you in."

Harry snuggled down into the sheets Remus had tucked snuggly around him, burying his face in the clean, sweet-smelling pillow. This was the most comfortable bed he'd ever slept in. he could even stretch out all the way in it and not touch the edge. He wasn't making any kind of decisions until he knew the score, but Harry rather thought he would end up liking this place… that was as long as Remus didn't send him away or Helios didn't get him sent away.

He was beginning to like Remus, just a little bit, which was a very big thing because Harry was very tight about who he allowed himself to like. He knew that any second someone could go from being very nice to not nice at all and would always have to keep his guard up. But so far… he supposed he'd just have to wait and see. There wasn't anything else for him to do.

A shadow leapt lightly onto the end of his bed, making Harry shoot upright. But it was only Helios. Harry rather thought there was a smug look to him as he curled up at Harry's feet.

"Helios!" Harry whispered furiously. "Can't you sleep somewhere else?"

But the cat ignored him. Harry raised a hand to catch the inevitable sneeze that fallowed and flopped back onto his pillow with an exasperated sigh and then another muffled sneeze. He pulled the pillow over his head, sniffling and fighting the urge to sneeze again.

Helios was going to make things difficult.

**A/N: Right so what did you think? I know Harry's not really allergic to cats in the books, but hey, it's AU, I can tweak a little. :D Thanks to everyone who has reviewed and please give me another one! I feed off your feedback!**


	5. With Time

**A/N: Hey, I'm so sorry this took so long. If you can't tell, lots of little brothers and sister (not to mention nieces and annoying older brothers) take up lots of time! But I'm back now! So here's a chapter for you all! **

**I'm hoping things will go a little faster with updates, but I'm making no promises. The good news is that I pretty much know what I'm going to do though, so that should speed things up. I hope you like this! I wanted it to be longer, but it was already getting long and I think the rest really deserves its own chapter. So please don't forget to review! I love the feedback! You guys who have reviewed or favorite this story are fabulous! Thanks so much! It really does help! **

**Also, Thanks to Morning Lilies who is awesome and betaed this for me! **

Once Harry had been tucked in, Remus headed back downstairs and towards the fire. Dumbledore had instructed him to check. At the bottom of the stairs, Remus paused and looked back up at Harry's closed bedroom door. It was odd, he thought. It seemed normal enough, putting him in pajamas, making sure he brushed his teeth, tucking the brightly-patterned covers around him. That was what you did every night when you had a six-year-old. But there was something off, something Remus couldn't put his finger on. He couldn't explain where his worry was coming form; perhaps it was just his natural disposition to be worried, but this was a different kind of apprehension.

Shaking himself, Remus crossed over to the fireplace, pulled down the small tin on top of the fireplace, and drew a handful of glittering powder.

"Hogwarts Headmaster's office," he said clearly as he threw the powder over the flames.

Immediately they roared emerald green and Remus lowered himself to the floor and stuck his head into the fire.

"Ah, Remus," Dumbledore said pleasantly when he caught site of Remus's head in the fire. "I trust everything went smoothly?"

"Yes…" Remus said hesitantly, thinking about the little things that seemed off.

Dumbledore raised an eyebrow and he went on. "I met them at the station and we had lunch with Arabella, then headed home. Nothing… unexpected… happened."

"Excellent," Dumbledore said, nodding. "How is the boy adjusting?"

Remus didn't answer at once. Harry _seemed _alright. He certainly wasn't a difficult child by any means. But…

"Dumbledore, what do you know about the Dursleys?" he asked tentatively.

Dumbledore gave him a searching look. "You have suspicions, Remus?" he asked seriously.

"They abandoned their nephew for displaying magic," Remus explained. "It doesn't exactly show a strong familiar bond, does it?"

Dumbledore frowned slightly. "No, I will admit it was not he reaction I had hoped, but I'm sure you know about Lily and Petunia's past. It is understandable to be wary of magic, especially given the circumstances. But I'm sure when we find them, I'll be able to convince Vernon and Petunia that they needn't be afraid."

"And you think that's all it is?" Remus asked. "You think they just panicked because of the magic?"

"Has Harry indicated anything to the contrary?" Dumbledore inquired.

"Well, not exactly, but there's something… off about him," Remus faltered. "There are moments when… it's difficult to explain, but he looks like a frightened animal over tiny things. He's awfully quiet."

"If I remember correctly, you seemed to be very much like that when you were young," Dumbledore pointed out.

"Yes, but I had a reason," Remus said pointedly.

"Don't you think being abandoned by your family is enough of a reason?" Dumbledore returned, that quiet, inarguable wisdom underlying his gentle tone.

Remus swallowed, not sure how to answer. "I suppose," he conceded. "But all the same, there's just something about it all. There's something off about Harry. He's not what I expected. He was never quiet or scared when he was a baby," Remus added in such a quiet voice it barely carried over the crackle of the flames. "He nearly gave his parents heart attacks every other day. Lily had to practically nail everything down. She used to blame James for Harry's adventurous spirit…" he trailed off wistfully.

"Remus," Dumbledore said gently. "You can't expect Harry to be the same as he was five years ago. After what's happened to him, he's bound to be a bit 'off'. I'd be more worried if those events hadn't had some effect on him, young as he might have been when it happened."

Remus was quiet for a while. It was difficult to hear, but Dumbledore had a point.

"Give it time Remus," Dumbledore advised. "You haven't even been around him for a day. And everything is changing and unfamiliar for him at the moment. I'm sure after he gets used to things, he'll come out of his shell a little more."

Remus nodded. "Of course. You're right. I suppose I'm just a bit nervous with all of this."

"Understandable," Dumbledore reassured kindly.

"Have you made any progress with finding his aunt and uncle?" Remus asked, changing the subject.

"Not very much, but there are promising leads," Dumbledore told him. "They will find it difficult to run from magic, as determined as they are."

"I imagine," Remus nodded, feeling his stomach twist slightly. He knew from the beginning that he wouldn't be able to keep Harry forever. He couldn't raise a child long-term anyway, he knew that. But he found himself hoping that it took Dumbledore a long time to convince Petunia to take her nephew again. "I ought to go," he said, not very regretfully. "If Harry needs something…"

"Of course," Dumbledore nodded.

"I'll check in again next week then, if nothing else happens."

"Good bye, Remus."

"Good bye."

XxXxX

Hiding from Helios was harder than Harry expected. The cat followed him around like a shadow, jumping into his lap whenever he sat down, laying down right over the picture Harry was coloring or the puzzle he was working on, and refusing to sleep anywhere but the end of Harry's bed. And even when Helios slunk off to take a nap or hunt, his hair was everywhere else.

Harry was getting heartily sick of sneezing. But on the plus side, he had gotten fairly good at not making a noise when he sneezed, if he could help it.

Aside from the cat hair, though, Harry was beginning to like Remus's house much better than anywhere else he'd ever been. Remus made good food and Harry got to have some of it three times a day no matter what. There were lots of toys to play with and no Dudley to break them or steal them. No one made him do anything or shouted or locked him up. All in all, Harry thought it was wonderful. Now the question was when was he going to have to leave? Something this good couldn't possibly last.

"What do you say about taking a look around outside today?" Remus asked as he placed a plate of sausages on the table in front of Harry one morning a few days after Harry had arrived. "I'll bet you're getting bored holed up here in the house."

Harry didn't answer right away; he was pressing his tongue as hard as he could to the roof of his mouth, trying to stave off the constant tickle that played in his sinuses. Helios mewed from under Harry's chair, flicking his tail contentedly.

"Out... heh… outside?" Harry repeated distractedly, his breath starting to catch.

He gave it up as a losing battle and cupped a hand over his mouth and nose.

"Heh…Hetchoo! Hechch!"

"Bless you," Remus said, sitting down across from Harry and looking at him closely. Harry's eyes were rather bloodshot, he thought, and the boy looked rather tired. "Are you feeling alright?"

Harry froze. Even though the question was delivered with a kindness that still seemed foreign to Harry, it still brought out the old fear of being locked away. His aunt and uncle never liked it when he was sick.

"Yes," he answered, resisting the urge to sniffle with great effort. Remus didn't seem convinced, so Harry changed the subject. "You… you said we could go outside today?" he asked timidly,

"Of course," Remus answered, smiling. "It's going to be quite a nice day, maybe one of the last nice ones of the year. I thought we would enjoy it."

Harry nodded, smiling, but inside he was whooping with excitement. He'd spent a lot of time staring out the windows at the trees and hill and the glimpses of a pond and longed to go see it all up close. And better yet, Helios's hair wouldn't be everywhere outside.

Harry listened as Remus talked all about the trails nearby and how they could pack a picnic and eat lunch outside on a blanket. It sounded like the books Harry used to read at his old school with their bright pictures and happy families. Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon would take Dudley on picnics, but they'd never taken Harry with them. He was trying not to get too excited, but it was hard.

Helios curled around his ankles and Harry did all he could to ignore the sneeze he could feel building. Remus was already getting suspicious enough. He pulled his cup of orange juice toward him and took a few sips to take his mind off of it. Helios leapt up onto the chair behind Harry, his tail flicking over Harry's face before Remus shoed him away. Harry held his breath, trying desperately to keep it in, but he couldn't.

"Hek-tchoo!" his entire body rocked forward with the force of the sneeze. The cup slipped from his fingers and landed with a loud clatter on the floor, orange juice seeping across the wood. Harry stared down at it horror-struck.

"I'm sorry!" he squealed, scrambling backward off his chair and backing into the corner, eyes locked on the mess. "I didn't mean to! I'm sorry!"

"It's alright," Remus reassured him, catching himself at the last minute as he automatically reached in his pocket for his wand. He didn't need to traumatize the poor boy on top of it all. "It's only juice. I'll have it cleaned up in a second."

Remus grabbed a wet cloth from the kitchen and mopped up the juice, Harry watching from where he had pressed himself up against the wall in the corner. When he'd tossed the saddened rag in the sink, Remus turned back to Harry, who hadn't moved.

"I'm really sorry!" Harry apologized at once, pressing himself harder against the wall.

"It's really alright," Remus reassured him, kneeling down in front of the boy. "It's only juice. And it was an accident. You didn't do anything wrong." He smiled reassuringly, but that nagging worry grew as he looked into Harry's wide green eyes. "I promise I'm not mad. I spill all the time. I'm always mopping things up."

Harry relaxed a little, stepping away from the wall.

"Bless you, by the way," Remus added, noticing the slight pinkness to Harry's nose and the way he kept sniffling. "Are you sure you feel well? If you'd rather, we can stay inside by the fire."

Harry shook his head a little. "Can – can we still go outside? I – I –" but he faltered, unable to find the words to tell Remus it was what he wanted. After spilling his juice, he didn't think he deserved to get what he wanted.

"Of course we can!" Remus agreed. "Why don't you go brush your teeth and grab a jumper and I'll throw together some lunch to bring with us. There are some tissues in the bathroom, too, if you need them."

"Okay," Harry said, looking relieved and darted off to follow instructions.

Remus stood up, running a hand through his hair. This wasn't the first time Harry had acted like that. It seemed like every loud noise made him skittish, like he was afraid to make little mistakes like dropping a book or spilling his crayons on the floor. Remus supposed the best he could do was reassure him that it was okay. Hopefully Dumbledore was right and Harry would relax and get used to things after a while.

Remus could hear Harry dashing around upstairs, getting ready, and hurried into the kitchen to fix lunch. Stealing a glance at the stairs, he pulled out his wand and set ingredients flying into sandwiches and bottles filling themselves with water. It felt good to use magic again. It was harder than he expected to ignore the impulse to reach for his wand all the time. Reveling in his moment, Remus flicked his wand at the water bottles to chill them and summoned a wicker basket to put everything in.

At that moment, Harry came tearing back down the stairs, and Remus had to hurriedly stuff his wand away and hope that Harry wouldn't notice how quickly things had gotten done.

"All ready?" Remus asked, noticing with amusement that Harry's jumper was on backwards and his glasses were slightly askew. "Need some help with that?" he asked, indicating the backwards shirt.

Harry looked down and blushed when he realized his mistake. Quickly he drew his arms into the jumper and turned it around.

"Want to help me finish up with lunch?" Remus asked, lifting Harry up to sit him on the counter beside the picnic basket. "Do you think you can pick out some fruit to pack while I try to find some crisps?"

Harry nodded and immediately set to work picking apples out of a dish on the counter.

When they'd gotten everything all packed, Remus helped Harry into his coat and tied his shoes. Then, on sudden inspiration, he hurried up to Harry's room to grab the soccer ball. Remus knew next to nothing about playing footie, but he knew you kicked the ball back and forth and hoped that was enough for a six-year-old.

The sun shone brightly in a soft blue sky swirled with wispy clouds. A cool breeze ruffled their hair as they made their way down the back steps and towards the little-used gate in the tumble-down fence that lined the small garden. A scattering of golden leaves carpeted the ground and skittered along in the wind.

"So, where should we start?" Remus asked, hefting the picnic basket higher in his arms.

Harry glanced up at him, fervently trying to find an answer to the question. There was a gap in the trees a few feet away that looked like a trail, so Harry pointed to it, looking questioningly up at Remus.

"Excellent pick," Remus smiled. "It goes along the pond. I think there's a clearing of sorts we can stop for lunch, too."

He offered his free hand to Harry, who took it after a second of hesitation, and lead the way down the wide path, chatting about the different kinds of trees and plants that grew along the path and the birds and squirrels that hopped and scurried in the brush. He knew a lot about everything, Harry thought as he listened to Remus describing how to tell trees apart by their leaves.

Harry loved the woods. It was beautiful out among the trunks and leaves, so close to all the animals. And every now and then he'd catch a stunning glimpse of the pond, glittering in the sunshine. He had never been out in nature like this. He'd only ever seen pictures, and they didn't do it justice at all.

He'd also nearly forgotten what it was like to be able to breathe through his nose. It was wonderful not to be constantly fighting that annoying tickle, or dodging out of sight to sneeze as quietly as possible.

The crisp, autumn air filled his lungs and skittered across his face on the breeze, and in the distance he could hear splashes of fish or birds on the pond. It was a while before he realized how happy it all made him. But it wasn't just that brief giddiness that came with smuggling a sweet home from school without Dudley taking it, or the fleeting relief of being left alone while the Dursleys went out somewhere and he stayed with Mrs. Figg. It was more substantial than that. He was _content_.

When they'd walked long enough for Harry to be getting tired, they reached a small clearing in the woods. Remus let Harry pick a place to spread the old blanket he'd brought with them, and the pair of them flopped down under an old, sprawling tree on the edge of the clearing.

Remus helped Harry collect fallen leaves and showed him how to tell what trees they came from and then told Harry about how, if they brought them back to the house, they could dry them out by putting them between the pages of a book.

Remus watched Harry giggle as a leaf fluttered down and landed perfectly in the palm of his hand and couldn't help but smile. The frightened little boy who had spilled juice this morning had all but disappeared. Dumbledore must be right, he thought. It would just take time. Remus was reading too much into the little things. What had he been expecting? A slightly older version of the baby he used to know?

As they ate lunch, Harry told Remus about a project he'd done in school, involving collecting grass roots and dandelions from the playground and drawing them. It was the first time Harry had engaged in any kind of lengthy conversation. He usually kept his words to only necessary or polite responses. Remus couldn't help but beam inside as he watched the little boy illustrate with his hands what his pictures had looked like. It was a start.

**A/N: Kay, so this was getting a little long and I really wanted to post something for you guys today, so I'm just going to put it up. Maybe it ended a little abruptly, but I'll try to get the next chapter up quicker this time. I figured you'd like something sooner than waiting another week for me to finish. (Hopefully it won't take that long to update though :D) **

**Anyway, so thanks to everyone who's reading and please review! I promise the next chapter is gonna be big! We'll get into some real stuff with it. I don't want to say too much, but things are gonna start happening! :D **


	6. The Spark

**A/N: Hey everybody! Sorry this is late. I have excuses but you don't want to be bored by them. I'll just let you get to reading. I don't like the first half of this very much, but I needed a bridge to the rest of the chapter. Anyway, hope you like it! **

After they'd finished eating, Remus pulled out the soccer ball.

"What d'you say?" He asked, tossing the ball lightly to Harry.

Harry looked form the ball to Remus and scrambled up eagerly. He'd only ever played soccer in gym class at school and then he'd spent most of the time avoiding Dudley, who made it his goal to see how many times he could trip Harry. It looked like the rest of the kids were having fun though.

Harry and Remus were fairly well matched, neither one of them with much practice. Remus had never been athletic and missed the ball more often than Harry did, but the joys of playing with a six-year-old were that Harry didn't even seem to notice or care that his opponent was terrible.

"Nice one!" Remus cheered as Harry sent the ball sailing a good few yards.

Harry beamed as he went tearing after it and kicked it back towards Remus. It was incredible to just be running around for no reason. He was used to running, but it was always from someone or to do something quickly, never just for fun.

He didn't want to stop. Remus began pretending to announce a match, making up ridiculous terminology that had Harry giggling madly, and whenever Harry managed to get the ball past Remus (at least that was what Remus thought was the object of the game), he would scoop the little boy up and swing him around. At first Harry was startled by this, but he got used to it quickly, even enjoyed soaring through the air for a few seconds. It was sort of like flying. But eventually Harry's sore, bruised body began to protest.

"Time to head in?" Remus suggested, when he noticed Harry beginning to drag. Harry was not keen on the idea of returning to the house and Helios, but he nodded and scampered to help Remus pick up the blanket and basket.

"What do you think about having some hot chocolate when we get back?" Remus offered, walking slowly so that Harry could keep up with him.

"Sure," Harry agreed at once, grinning broadly to himself. It always looked so delicious when Dudley had it.

"Alright, sounds like a plan," Remus smiled, gripping Harry's hand as the path got particularly uneven.

Harry's foot caught on a rock and he pitched forward. Remus, unbalanced by the heavy load he was carrying under his other arm, tried to keep him from falling, but he wasn't quite quick enough this time. Harry sprawled on the rocky path, the arm that wasn't in Remus's grip breaking his fall.

"Are you alright?" Remus asked worriedly, dropping the basket and blanket and lifting Harry back to his feet.

Harry was clenching his teeth against the shooting pain in his elbow, which had collided painfully with the ground. His glasses had been knocked askew and his chin was scraped a bit, but he nodded. Remus looked skeptically at his pained expression.

"Are you sure? It looked like you landed pretty hard on your arm." He reached for the arm Harry was cradling against his chest.

Immediately the shudders that had slowly been being pried open all afternoon slammed shut. Harry stumbled backwards, falling again and smacking his already-aching elbow once more.

Remus held up his hands. "It's alright, Harry, I just want to make sure you're not hurt."

"I'm not," Harry said quickly, pretending not feel any of the pain in his scraped arm as he got to his feet. "I'm fine."

Remus scrutinized the boy. He couldn't think why Harry would be lying about it. Most kids raised a holy clamor when they so much as bumped their heads. "Harry-" he started, reaching again for Harry's arm, but Harry backed away.

"I'm okay. You caught me mostly. But – but I'm cold. Can we go back in?"

Remus hesitated a moment longer, but then gathered up the fallen basket and things and led the way on down the path, keeping a firm grip on Harry's hand to stop him from falling again.

But of course Harry was not fine. He had to bite his lip to stop from whimpering as his arm throbbed. His elbow stung and smarted horribly.

By the time the house came back into view, the afternoon light was beginning to fade and Harry was sore and tired. He just wanted to curl up under a blanket and sleep. That's what made pain go away, Harry knew; sleeping.

"Heh-choo!" Harry sneezed unexpectedly as they reached the back steps. Helios leapt from the bottom step and purred as he curled himself around Harry's legs.

Harry sighed inwardly as the stuffiness returned to his sinuses and another sneeze began building.

"Bless you," Remus said kindly. He dropped the picnic basket, blanket, and soccer ball by the back steps, thinking he could retrieve them later, and glanced down at the little boy beside him. Harry leaned against the railing, sagging tiredly and rubbing furiously at his nose.

"Hechch!" he sneezed again, bucking forward and nearly toppling over.

After a moment's indecision, Remus bent and scooped the little boy up into his arms. Harry tensed, fighting down the urge to fight against Remus's grip as he was carried up the stairs and through the back door. His breathing quickened and he stayed rigid until Remus had deposited him on the couch.

"Merlin, it's getting chilly," Remus said emphatically, rubbing his hands together.

The corner of Harry's mouth twitched at the odd expression, but he kept his eyes fixed firmly on his hands, muscles still tense. He wasn't used to being carried. He could still feel huge arms heaving him into his cupboard, tossing him around like a sack of potatoes;

"Suppose winter's on its way," Remus went on, shouldering off his coat. He knelt down to help Harry out of his jacket. Remus frowned slightly as he undid the buttons. He thought Harry looked awfully pale and there was definite droop to the boy's eyes. Harry sniffled and rubbed some more at his nose. He couldn't give Harry pepperup, but there was some children's cold medicine up in the cupboard that might help.

But these thoughts were driven out of Remus's mind when Harry slipped his right arm out of his jacket, wincing as he bent his sore elbow.

"Harry," Remus gasped, grabbing Harry's arm and pulling it towards him before the boy could twist away. Small, dark red splotches had seeped through Harry's sleeve at his elbow. "I _knew _that spill looked pretty nasty," Remus said almost to himself. "How come you didn't say anything? That looks like it hurts."

Harry couldn't find his voice to answer. His eyes had grown wide and he stared back fearfully as Remus looked at him.

"Come on," said Remus gently. "Let's get a bandage on that, shall we?"

Harry let Remus lead him numbly towards the kitchen and lift him up on the counter, keeping one hand on Harry's shoulder as he rummaged in the cupboard above his head. Harry was thinking about what Remus would see when he rolled up his sleeve. The bruises were starting to fade, but they were still there, painfully vivid against Harry's pale skin, and Remus would see them the moment he pushed back the sleeve.

Panic had begun to seep through Harry as he desperately thought of a way to keep the marks hidden. Uncle Vernon had told him to never tell, to never ever show anybody. He would be in trouble. Remus would know what a horrible little freak he was. He wasn't ever supposed to let anyone see.

Remus was talking cheerfully about something, trying to distract Harry from the pain in his elbow and how much it would sting when he cleaned it off, but Harry didn't hear a word. When Remus reached for his arm again, Harry pulled it away, folding it behind his back.

"Come on," Remus coaxed, smiling reassuringly. "I know it'll sting a bit, but it'll feel much better once it's all bandaged up. Then we can get that hot chocolate going, yeah?"

But Harry kept his arm behind him, scooting back on the counter, away from Remus.

"Harry," Remus said a little more sternly. "I've got to clean that up so it can heal properly." He tugged Harry's arm from behind his back as gently as he could, holding it tightly as Harry tried to resist. "It won't hurt for long," Remus tried to reassure him, but Harry couldn't hear him over the roar of panic in his ears. He _couldn't _let Remus lift his sleeve. He _couldn't_.

A loud crack echoed through the kitchen, making both Harry and Remus jump violently, and then the glass-fronted cabinets shattered, shards raining to the floor like glittering diamonds.

Harry stared at the glass fragments for half a second, terror flooding every inch of his body because he knew _he _was the one that made it happen. Then he jumped down off the counter, staggering as he landed, and shot out of the kitchen as fast as he had ever run before, making for the back door.

"Harry!" Remus called, jerking out of his momentary shock and lunging after the boy.

But Harry was fast for being so small. He burst through the back door and flew down the steps before Remus had made it halfway across the kitchen, and was around the corner of the house before Remus reached the made it outside.

Night was falling fast. In the few minutes they'd been inside, the light had faded to dusk and Remus had to squint in the gloom. He couldn't see Harry anywhere. He turned in a full circle at the top of the steps, eyes sweeping the gaps in the trees where paths wound away and out of sight after only a few steps. Harry could have gone anywhere in any direction. Panic filled his chest, making it hard to breathe as he thought of the icy pond not to far away, or the little cliffs and slopes that surrounded the house.

"Think rationally, Lupin," Remus mumbled to himself, hurrying down the steps, pulling out his wand and lighting it. It was no good keeping magic hidden now. He was sure that accidental magic was the source of the glass all over his kitchen and no matter what Dumbledore said, Harry needed to know why things like that were happening. He started for the path they'd taken earlier that day. It was closest to the bottom of the steps and Harry would think of it first. "He's only six; he can't be that far…"

He sprinted along the rutted trail, calling Harry's name and trying hard not to sound angry or scary – not an easy thing when your panicky and out of breath.

_He's only six, he can't outrun you_, Remus chanted in his head, praying he was going in the right direction. _He can't outrun you_…. Abruptly Remus skidded to a halt and spun on his heel, racing off back towards the house. Harry couldn't have outrun him. If he was on that trail, Remus would have overtaken him already, which meant he either went off the trail or didn't go down it at all.

Harry was curled into a tight ball under the front porch, breathing hard. He knew he couldn't outrun Remus, not now when it was too dark to see and nowhere to go. Back at Privit drive he'd thought about running, in case he ever had to. There, at least there were lots of people around, cars or busses or Mrs. Figg if nothing else. Here there was nowhere and if he hid in the house, he'd be found. So he dove into the first hiding place he could find – a gap under the porch.

He'd done it again. He couldn't believe he'd done it again. Harry didn't know how, but he knew it was him that had broken the glass and the last time he'd done something like that… he was still sore from it. Remus would be mad. And if he didn't hit like the Dursleys, he'd send Harry away and _they _might hit.

Harry pressed himself into the ground, shaking hard from cold and fear. He didn't know what he was going to do. He couldn't stay curled under this porch forever, but he couldn't run either. There was nowhere to go. He could hear Remus calling for him far away, looking in the woods. What he did know – from long experience – was staying hidden was the best he could do.

**A/N: I have a feeling this fic is going to stretch out longer than I had intended. My chapters aren't as long as I thought they'd be, but I just keep finding good places to stop. I sort of think that makes it easier to read if your reading it all in one go, but I don't know… **

**Anyway, did you like it? I hope so! It didn't go as far as I thought it would but all my chapters are doing that. I'm going to try to get the next one up soon! I know I said that last time and it's been like two weeks (eek!) but I've got some time and I'm going to keep writing because this was kind of cliffy. **

**Anyway, thanks so much to everyone who reviewed! You guys are wonderful! Now, not to sound ungrateful or anything (beggers can't be choosers ;D), but some reviews with actual feedback would be great! I'll certainly accept the random smiley face or single word 'good', but that doesn't really help me much. I'd like to know what you like about this fic, what I could improve on, etc. It doesn't take that long to say what you think and I'm a million times more grateful for it! Anyway, so keep that in mind as you notice that little blue button right under these words ;) **


	7. Things Come Out

**A/N: Yes! Finished! Here you go! Nice and quick! **

A shadow leapt off the porch and landed with a loud yowl in the gap Harry had crawled through making him jump and smack his head painfully on the underside of the porch. He shrank back against the side of the house as the creature crouched, and Harry could make out yellow eyes peering at him through the darkness. Then the thing curled up, eyes still fixed on Harry, and let out a kind of irritated mew.

"Helios!" Harry breathed, relieved for the first time ever to see the cat, even though he could already feel his sinuses flooding.

Helios gave another irritated mew and stretched, still fixing Harry with his yellow eyes. Then suddenly he pounced on something by his paw and settled down to enjoy his prey. Apparently Harry was hiding in his favorite hunting ground and he was not particularly pleased by it. He licked his paws, not looking away from Harry for a second, and Harry thought he could practically feel the irritation coming off the cat as his nose began to tickle horribly again.

"Harry!" Remus's voice, suddenly much closer than before, though still muffled by distance cut through the night and Helios turned his head sharply to stare in that direction.

"Heh – hehchoo!" Harry sneezed, bringing a hand up to rub his nose as another one threatened.

Helios snapped his head around to look at him once more. He cocked his head to the side, contemplating Harry with a sort of indecisive air as he got to his feet.

"Hetchoo!" Harry sneezed again, muffling the noise in his uninjured elbow.

Helios gave another mew, which sounded rather resigned as he watched the little boy screwing up his face against a third sneeze, his nose already twitching. Then he slunk under the porch and curled up against Harry's side, not even flinching when Harry's whole body jerked in a volley of muffled sneezes.

Even as he rubbed his running, tickly nose, Harry was surprised to find that he was glad for Helios's warm body next to his. It made the darkness pressing in around him feel less scary. Harry reached a shaky hand out and wound his fingers through Helios's fur, feeling the cat's reassuring purr vibrating against his chest.

Remus reached the edge of the yard again, panting heavily. He hoped Harry hadn't run off into the woods. He didn't know how he'd find him then. But maybe he'd gone a different direction. Remus set off at jog around the house. Maybe Harry had made for the road or maybe he was hiding somewhere. Remus shined his wandlight across the porch as he passed, but there wasn't anything on it. He made a circle of the front yard, calling Harry's name, ran out to look down the road, but couldn't see anything.

He traipsed back to towards the house with desperation clawing at his insides. Every second it felt like Harry was slipping farther and farther away. He could be anywhere in the woods now, going in any direction. He'd have to call Dumbledore, maybe even the Weasleys to help. How could this have happened?

Remus sank down on the front steps and buried his face in his hands, trying to collect himself and figure out what to do.

About five feet away, Harry jerked his head forward in another silent sneeze. He hated sneezing silently; it hurt and only made him have to sneeze all the more, but Remus was close enough to hear him. Blinking his streaming, itchy eyes, Harry willed with all his might not to sneeze again as Helios inched up closer to him, rubbing his face against Harry's cheek and purring like a motor. Harry took an involuntary gasp of air, pinching his nose hard as his breathing began to catch.

Remus's head jerked up when he heard the muffled "Chsh!" He lurched to his feet, shining his wandlight all around him.

"Harry?" he called taking a few hesitant steps.

Harry buried his face in the crook of his arm, fighting with all his might against the tickle working its way up through his sinuses. But he couldn't stop the inevitable and it was too much to keep silent.

"Heh – heh – ecktchoo! Etchoo! Chsh!...Hetchoo!"

Remus whirled and his eyes alighted on the gap beneath the porch. He flung himself down and thrust his wand tip into the darkness, flooding the space with light. Harry was curled against the side of the house sniffling piteously with Helios stretched out against his side.

The cat leapt to his feet as soon as Remus's light had swept beneath the porch. He slunk out from under the porch, pausing to give Remus a you-owe-me sort of look before disappearing off into the night.

Remus sagged, almost crying with relief at seeing Harry there, dirty and snotty and visibly shaking, but wonderfully alive and not stumbling around in the woods.

"Harry!" Remus cried, voice breaking as he dropped his wand and wriggled under the porch to pull Harry out.

Harry stayed curled in a tight little ball, eyes squeezed shut as Remus pulled him out and into the open again. He braced himself for the blow that he knew was coming, tensing his muscles… but instead he found himself being swept up into Remus's lap, strong arms enfolding him.

"Oh god, thank god!" Remus was mumbling into his hair, rocking them both side to side. "Thank god! You had me scared to death!" he added weakly, releasing Harry and looking down at him. "Don't ever do that again, okay?"

Harry blinked, startled by this reaction. You weren't supposed to get hugged for being bad. In fact, Harry couldn't remember ever being hugged period. He turned his head and sneezed into his shoulder.

"Come on," Remus said, voice still weak from relief. "Let's go inside."

He snatched his wand from the ground and stowed it in his pocket before straightening up, Harry in his arms, and heading around the house to the open back door. He could feel the little boy shaking hard and wondered how much of it was caused by the freezing air and how much from fright. He felt wretched for letting this happen. Harry was cold, sick, hurt, and scared. Weren't those the four major things guardians were supposed to take care of?

Harry sneezed for a third time as Remus put him back on the couch and grabbed a blanket to wraparound his shoulders. Harry's eyes were watering so much from the cat hair on his shirt and the blanket and the couch (which was Helios's favorite napping place) that he didn't even see Remus pull out his wand and summon a bowl of warm water and a cloth from the kitchen.

Remus gently cleaned the dirt and snot off Harry's face and hands, murmuring softly to try and calm Harry down. When he'd finished cleaning him up as best he could, Remus replaced the rag in the bowl and sat back on his heals looking worriedly at the little boy still trembling in front of him.

"Harry?" he asked softly, resisting the urge to tip Harry's chin up so he could look into his eyes because he knew Harry would flinch away if he tried. "Harry, are you afraid what happened in the kitchen? With the glass?"

Harry didn't respond.

"It's okay," Remus pressed. "I know what happened."

"I didn't do it!" Harry cried suddenly, drawing his knees up to his chin and pressing his hands over his head. "I didn't do it! It wasn't me! I don't know how it happened! I don't know!"

"Harry!" Remus exclaimed in surprise. "I know! It's okay, shhh, it's alright!"

He tried to put a soothing hand on Harry's shoulders, but Harry jerked away, crawling to the other end of the couch and burying his face in the cushion, arms over his head. Remus watched him, more alarmed than before, a sick feeling settling in his stomach as he edged along on the floor so that he knelt in front of the little boy again.

"Harry, why didn't you want me pushing up your sleeve earlier?" he asked in just above a whisper.

Harry whimpered, shaking his head a little.

"Was there something on your arm you didn't want me to see?" Remus persisted. "Were you scared about me finding something?"

"They don't like it when funny things happen," Harry said at last, voice so quiet and muffled that Remus had to strain to make out the words. "They don't like it when I do funny things."

"Who? Your aunt and uncle?" Remus asked, feeling the sick feeling rise in his chest.

Harry nodded almost imperceptibly. Then he turned his head out of the sofa to sneeze hard.

"Bless you," Remus mumbled pushing himself up to sit beside Harry on the sofa and gently sitting him upright.

"Keshoo!" Harry sneezed again, catching it in his cupped hands. Remus fished in his pocket for a handkerchief and handed it over. Harry buried his face in it with another sneeze.

"Can I see your arm?" Remus asked quietly.

Harry peered at him warily over the top of the handkerchief, but finally extended his arm, looking down and away as Remus gently pushed the sleeve back.

Two large bruises blotched Harry's forearm. Remus felt his breath catch. "Did they do that to you?" he asked hoarsely. Harry nodded wordlessly, feeling his throat close up. There was no point in hiding it now. Uncle Vernon wasn't here to get mad and after everything that had just happened, Harry thought Remus would be more upset if he tried to hide it.

"Is that all they did?"

Harry shook his head.

Cautiously, Remus gripped the bottom of Harry's shirt and pulled it over his head. What he saw did not surprise him, but it did shock him. Nearly every inch of Harry's thin frame was discolored. Bruises covered his arms, back, stomach, and chest. Angry red gashes that seemed to be from a belt crisscrossed Harry's back, and beneath all the new injuries Remus could make out the layer of scars that told of ongoing abuse. Harry sat, shaking, wondering what would happen now that someone else had found out and looking so small and fragile.

Remus felt his stomach lurch and his throat close at the same time. He fought the urge to be sick, but couldn't stop the hot tears that spilled down his cheeks at the sight of what terrible things had been done to this little boy. To James and Lily's son. To the happy little baby he could remember.

"Oh Harry!" He gasped, sweeping the boy into his arm once more and holding him tight. He could feel Harry tensing, but couldn't make himself let him go. "What have they done? God. What kind of monsters can do this to a little kid? God."

"Uncle – Uncle Vernon didn't hurt Dudley," Harry tried to explain, feeling tears rise to his own eyes as he remembered things he wished more than anything he could forget. "He d-didn't shout at Aunt Petunia. They just didn't like me's all. I wasn't their son and they didn't want me and I'm different. I-I'm weird. I m-make funny things happen and th-th-they don't like it! I'm a freak! I'm a little horrible freak!"

Harry was sobbing by now, face buried in Remus's shoulder. He expected Remus to be repulsed by this revelation, to go dump him back under the porch or to put him back on that train and send him away. But instead Remus held him tight and rubbed his back gently as he could around the injuries and smoothed his messy hair.

"Oh Harry, no you're not," he murmured. "You're not a freak. You're not weird. Your Aunt and Uncle are the horrible ones. I'm so sorry I let this happen! I'm so sorry, Harry."

But Harry could hardly make sense of the words. He was crying so hard into Remus's chest that he felt sick. Remus rocked them slowly back and forth, murmuring soothingly and smoothing Harry's hair, letting his own tears drip silently down his cheeks.

They sat like this for a long time, until Harry's sobs tapered into whimpers and then shuddering breaths as he cried himself to sleep in Remus's lap.

Some time later Remus got cautiously to his feet and carried Harry heavily up the stairs. He laid him gently in his own bed, using his wand to change Harry's dirty clothes for clean pajamas and at least cleaned and bandaged Harry's bloody elbow. It was the most he could do just then, but tomorrow he would get Madam Pomfrey or Molly Weasley to heal Harry properly.

Remus looked down at Harry's tiny sleeping figure one more time and felt all the horror and sickness and sadness sweep over him in a roaring torrent once more. He leaned down and kissed Harry's messy fringe lightly before going into his own room, and collapsing on his bed.

He reached over for the picture of Himself, Lily, and James from sometime just before Harry was born. He traced a finger over their laughing faces, across Lily's swollen belly, and choked on a sob. Remus curled up on his bed, pressing the picture so hard into his chest that the frame dug into his skin.  
"I'm so sorry," he whispered to Lily and James. "I'm so sorry. I was selfish. I didn't go see him for five years. I didn't check that he was okay. I told myself that Dumbledore wouldn't let me, that Harry wouldn't miss me anyway… but I just didn't want to have to face you in him so soon after…. God, I'm so, so sorry. But I'm going to make up for it now," he added more fiercely. "I promise you, I'll make up for it now…"

**A/N: So this was the big scene! I hope you all liked it and it was worth the wait! Obviously there are still some more important things that need to be addressed. Magic for one. I was going to have that in this scene, but it just didn't fit with all the emotion. But that's coming soon! And then of course there's still the Helios thing :D All to come! Stay tuned! **

**And you know, review too! :D Thanks so much! **


	8. Revelations

**A/N: Finally back! I'm so thrilled with all the reviews from my last updates! You all are amazing! So here's some loose ends. As always the chapter didn't get to the part I thought it would, but I did get through something I though would be a while in coming! Hope you all like it!**

Remus slept fitfully. Awful, confused images plagued his dreams and more than once he woke with a start, imagining he could hear crying or furious bellowing. James and Lily hovered in his subconscious, never speaking. The only dream he could clearly remember was one of Lily sobbing beside her son's bed, and it effectively kept him from drifting off at all afterwards.

When gray dawn light finally began to creep through the curtains, Remus gave up and rolled out of bed. He crept down the hall to check on Harry before showering and dressing haphazardly. Then he went downstairs, trying to decide what to do next. What he very much wanted to do was storm into Dumbledore's office and rage at the man for telling him not to worry about this, for putting Harry in that house in the first place, for trying to put him _back_. But that would have to wait. First Harry had to be tended to.

There were two options for healing. Well, three, but Remus's potions skills were minimal at best and this was far beyond ordinary first-aid, which meant he needed help. There wasn't any way Remus was calling an ordinary mediwitch, like the one he had had as a child… at least before he was bitten. Some stranger was not coming near Harry right now, not with everything that was going on and with Harry being famous and all of that. So this left two people: Madam Pomfrey or Molly Weasley.

Madam Pomfrey was certainly better trained to handle something like this, Remus reasoned. He trusted her, of course, after all the monthly stays he'd had in the hospital wing at school. But there was something about Molly Weasley that was comforting. She was far more used to dealing with small children and would most likely be better at assuaging Harry's fear. She would also be more likely to be up at this hour, not to mention Remus would not have to go through Dumbledore for her.

Remus bent over the fire and tossed a handful of floo powder into it, saying 'The Burrow" as he thrust his head into the flames. A moment of dizzying spinning later, he was looking out into a cramped kitchen cluttered with all the signs of being part schoolroom and part playroom to five small children. And, to Remus's relief, a plump, red-haired woman sat at the scrubbed wooden table, sipping a mug of steaming tea.

"Molly?"

Mrs. Weasley started at Remus's horse voice, nearly spilling her tea.

"Remus! Gracious, you startled me. Is something the matter?" she asked worriedly, taking in his sleep-deprived appearance and the early hour.

"Yes," Remus said heavily. "I'm sorry to bother you so early, but… I need your help."

"Is Harry alright?" Mrs. Weasley asked more anxiously still as she set her cup aside and knelt in front of the fire.

Mrs. Weasley grew steadily paler as she listened to Remus's pained explanation of the situation. By the time he'd finished, tears were sparkling in her eyes.

"Oh, the poor, poor child!" she whispered, hands at her mouth. "Of course I'll come, Remus! Just let me tell Arthur what's going on so he can stay with the children."

"You needn't rush," Remus told her. "Harry isn't even awake yet and he doesn't know anything about magic yet. I'll need to explain how he broke that glass last night before you come over. Can you come in an hour or so?"

"Certainly," Mrs. Weasley agreed at once. "Oh, Remus! I can't imagine how anyone could do such awful things to a little boy!"

"Me either," Remus mumbled. "Thank you very much, Molly."

And with that he withdrew from the fire. Remus knelt on the hearth rug for a moment, waiting for his head to stop spinning. Then he headed for the kitchen. Glass still sparkled everywhere across the floor. He had taken out his wand and was on the point of repairing everything when an idea struck him and he put his wand back in his pocket. He'd leave the mess for now.

A muffled sneeze made him turn around. Harry stood at the bottom of the stairs, pinching his nose as his breath began to catch again. Helios mewed on the banister beside him.

"Heh-tcho!" Harry sneezed again, rubbing his nose and eyes with his knuckles.

"Bless you," Remus said warmly, grabbing a tissue from a side table as he crossed over to Harry. Harry took the tissue gratefully as he rocked forward with a third sneeze. He gave Helios a cautious look, unsure of what to think of the animal after last night, and edged away from him.

Remus noticed and a suspicion began to form.

"Harry? Are you allergic to cats?" he asked.

Harry looked up at him sharply and then shook his head.

"Are you sure?" Remus persisted, scooping Helios off the banister to loud yowls of protest from the creature.

"I'm – I'm not –" Harry tried to protest, but his breath was catching as Remus knelt down in front of him, Helios in his arms. "Chchoo!"

Remus raised an eyebrow. He stood up and backed away, taking Helios with him. Harry sniffled, but didn't sneeze. Remus dropped the cat lightly on the floor and Helios padded back over to Harry, wrapping himself around Harry's legs.

Immediately Harry scrunched up his face, trying not to give in to the tickle.

Remus slowly came back to kneel before him and offered another tissue.

"Heh…heh… I don't… n-need it," Harry tried to insist, turning his head away. But a moment later his head jerked forward in a silent sneeze.

Remus watched uneasily as the boy's entire torso bucked forward in two more silent sneezes. That couldn't be good for him.

"I think you do," Remus countered, waving the tissue towards him. "You shouldn't sneeze like that," he went on. "It looks painful and it can't be good for you."

"Tchoo!" Harry sneezed, flinging up an arm to catch the sneeze.

"Come on, Helios," Remus said, scooping the cat up again as Helios leapt up on Harry's legs and Harry doubled over with another sneeze. "Leave the poor boy alone."

He carried Helios to the back door and dropped him outside. "Go on, go hunt for a bit and we'll figure out what to do about you later."

"Hetchoo! Ihchoo! Heh…Chchoo!" Harry sneezed, covering his face with his hands.

"Here," Remus said gently, wiping off Harry's face and hands with a clean handkerchief. "Why didn't you tell me it was that old cat making you sick?"

Harry didn't respond. He only looked down at his knees, feeling small and stupid and worried. He didn't think Remus would kick him out because of the cat now, not after last night, but it didn't seem like he could do anything right.

Remus felt his heart break a little more at the utterly miserable expression on the boys face. "No matter," he said soothingly. "But I'd like to know things like this from now on, alright? It's my job to make sure you're alright."

Harry nodded, sneezing one last time into his shoulder.

"Bless you," Remus said, offering another tissue. "Now, I've got something to show you," he went on, standing up and leading Harry towards the kitchen.

They stopped at the edge of the tile and Harry peered across the glass-strewn floor with a mixture of guilt and trepidation. Was he getting in trouble for the glass after all? Perhaps Remus had forgotten about it last night because he felt sorry for Harry, but now he'd be in for it.

"Do you know how that happened?" Remus asked. "Honestly." he added, remembering Harry's panicked denial last night. "It's alright, you won't get into trouble."

Harry chewed his lip for a moment before answering timidly, "Y-yes. I broke it. But I don't know how!" he hastened to add, leaning away from Remus to cower against the side of the cabinets.

"Well, it's a good thing I do then," Remus said lightly, smiling at Harry's bewildered expression. "And I can fix it, too."

With that, Remus pulled his wand out of his pocket and waved it at the shattered pieces, saying "_Reparo Totalum"_.

Harry gaped as the glass shards flew back together into seamless panes of glass and reaffixed themselves into the cabinet doors, looking as if they'd never been broken. He turned his wide eyes on Remus, opening and closing his mouth, but unable to make even one of his millions of questions into sound.

"It's magic," Remus said simply. "What you and I and a lot of other people can do is magic. When you're young, you don't have much control over it and when you get upset or scared, you might accidently make something happen, but when you get old enough to go to school and get a wand, you learn how to use it properly."

Harry's eyes were practically popping out of his head as Remus bent to look at him on a level. "You told me funny things happen around you," he said quietly. "Were you angry or frightened when they happened?"

Harry thought back to the few times strange things had happened. It was almost always when he was angry or frightened. He nodded slowly.

"It's because you're a wizard, Harry. Just like me. Just like your dad. And your mum was a witch. Just like loads of other people. Your aunt and uncle, they're what we call Muggles, though. It's what witches and wizards call people who can't do magic. Neither Muggles nor witches and wizards are better and being one or the other doesn't make you a freak. It just makes us different. But I don't think your aunt and uncle could understand that. You aren't a freak, Harry. You aren't at all."

Remus looked at the little boy earnestly, hoping very much that he was going about this the right way.

Harry didn't move for a few moments, staring open-mouthed at Remus. But finally he found his voice.

"I'm… magic?"

"Yes. The things you can do are magic. And when you turn eleven you'll get a wand of your own and go off to school to learn how to use it properly," Remus told him.

"Like in the films and the fairytale books?" Harry pressed.

Remus hesitated, not very familiar with Muggle fairytales. "Something like that I'd imagine."

"And… there are lots of people who can do magic, too?"

"A whole world. But of course, we have to stay hidden from the Muggles. It's against the law to let Muggles know about magic. But you needn't worry about that just yet."

Harry turned his head to gaze at the newly-mended cabinets, still looking utterly shocked.

"You know, we never did get around to that hot chocolate last night, did we?" Remus said. "What do you say we make some now?"

And he lifted Harry onto the counter so that he could have a good view as Remus directed the kettle and cocoa and mugs to put themselves in order.

**A/N: So Molly's healing process will have to wait until next chapter :( oh well. It ought to be a good one. Just so you know, I think the Weasleys will play a major role in this story because I love them so much and it breaks my heart to think that Harry wouldn't get those rib-cracking hugs he needs so much :D. **

**Also the spell Remus says to fix the glass is sort of an invention. I took **_**reparo **_**which we all know of course, and added totalum, which Hermione uses for another spell somewhere in DH. I just think that fixing a whole kitchen full of glass would need a little more power. **

**I don't know when I'll be able to update since I've got loads to do, but since these to chapters go together, I'll try getting the next one up soon! :D**

**As always, I LOVE hearing your thoughts on my story! **


	9. Healing

**A/N: I guess I update in pairs! I thought I'd get this done now since I don't foresee a lot of freetime. It's spring break for my little brothers and sisters which means lots more babysitting time for me! But anyway, now this is out of the way. I hope you like it! Also, if anyone cares, I have a poll up on my profile. It's not exactly about this story, but I'd still like some votes! :D **

Harry looked uncertainly between Remus and the woman sitting beside him on the bed. Remus said the woman was called Mrs. Weasley and that she was his friend and had come over to take care of Harry's injuries. He'd also said she was a witch and was going to use magic to heal him. The woman seemed nice enough. She had a kind smile and gentle eyes, but Harry wasn't sure he wanted to show her what Uncle Vernon had done to him. For all that Remus had said about Harry not being a freak, he couldn't quite believe that everyone would see it that way.

Remus had known Harry before he saw all of that. He didn't think Harry was a horrible little boy. But Mrs. Weasley didn't know him at all. She would probably think he deserved it. And then of course there was still the fact that he was not supposed to tell people. Remus was one thing, but to show a complete stranger?

"Come on, Dear," Mrs. Weasley coaxed gently. "I'm going to fix you right up."

Harry bit his lip, wondering if magic hurt.

Mrs. Weasley tsked as she ran a hand through Harry's messy hair, making the little boy tense at the touch. "Remus, when was the last time the child had a bath?"

Remus looked guilty. "I was going to give him one last night after we'd been outside, but…"

"Never mind, we'll get him cleaned up," she soothed. "My boys like me to add bubbles to their baths and turn them colors," Mrs. Weasley said to Harry. "Do you think you'd like that?"

Harry stayed silent as ever, though he was thinking bubbles did look really cool to play with.

"I've an idea," Mrs. Weasley smiled. "Why don't I run you a nice warm bubble bath right now? How does that sound?"

Harry didn't answer.

"That's a good idea," Remus said for him, and Mrs. Weasley headed down the hall to start the water.

"Harry, she's going to make you feel better," Remus tried to persuade him. "But you've got to let her see everything. She's the kindest woman you'll ever meet," he asserted. "You needn't be afraid."

Harry squirmed. He wasn't afraid of Mrs. Weasley. In fact, she was the first adult he could remember not being afraid of at all. But he still didn't like the idea of her seeing all his bruises and marks.

"Come on," Remus said, scooping Harry off the bed and carrying him down to the bathroom, where Mrs. Weasley sat on the edge of the tub, a fluffy towel waiting neatly beside her.

She smiled at Harry when Remus set him down in front of her.

"Do you need anything from me, Molly?" Remus asked. "Only I need to speak to Dumbledore, but I don't want to leave Harry alone…"

"We'll be fine," Mrs. Weasley told him. "Go and speak to him, Remus. We've got things in here, haven't we, Dear?"

Harry shifted, leaning against Remus's leg. He didn't want Remus to leave. He was feeling all unsettled again. Like he had when Mrs. Figg left. Remus wasn't going to leave him like the Dursleys had… was he? They had said they were coming back, too…

"I won't be gone long," Remus assured both Mrs. Weasley and Harry. He knelt down to look into Harry's face. "When I see you again, you'll be all clean and healed, right?"

Harry knew there wasn't anything to do but nod, so that was what he did.

"Good," Remus smiled at him again and straightened up, thanking Mrs. Weasley one more time before slipping out of the bathroom and closing the door behind him.

"Well, the water's all ready," Mrs. Weasley told Harry cheerfully, turning off the spout. "Let's get you out of those pajamas, hmm?"

She knelt down in front of Harry, talking like Remus did to distract Harry as she slowly unbuttoned his shirt.

"I've got a little boy your age you know," she told Harry with the first button. "He quite likes lions, too. I noticed you've got a picture of one in your room." The second button. "And my husband would love your airplanes." The third button. "Maybe you can show me how they work later." The fourth button.

Harry's pajama shirt fell open and Mrs. Weasley slid it off.

Even though Remus had warmed her, she couldn't help but gasp when she saw for herself the dark bruises covering the little boy's thin frame in large, dark splotches, the harsh red welts smarting on his chest and curling around his arms, and the feathery pattern of white scars, the remnants of old injuries. The little boy standing before her had been battered and beaten so terribly…

She felt like bursting into tears right there, gathering the boy up in her arms like she did her own children and never letting him go. But, of course, she couldn't.

"Come here, Dear," she murmured, guiding Harry over to the closed toilet and sitting him down on the lid. Slowly, she withdrew her wand. "I'm just going to heal some of those bruises before we get you into the tub, alright?"

She examined his torso, picking the worst looking patches, and slowly waved her wand over them, murmuring an incantation. The worst of the bruising faded very slightly, the splotches receding a little bit. She passed her wand over them again and the dark bruises faded even more. Very slowly, Mrs. Weasley worked her way up and down both arms, across Harry's chest and stomach and then onto his back, which was the worst.

As she worked, she chatted cheerily about anything she could think of, knowing it was best to keep the boy's mind off of what she was doing. She tried to ask Harry questions, but he didn't give much in response.

After Mrs. Weasley had finished with his torso, she slipped off his pajama bottoms and continued the healing spell down his bruised and scarred legs. There was a shiny burn mark on Harry's left shin and a pattern of angry red scars on the top of his foot that made her heart clench as she imagined what had caused them.

Finally, when she'd done all she felt safe doing on such a small, thin child, Mrs. Weasley sat back and smiled at him.

"Well, that's done now," she said. "Usually we can just wave our wands and heal a bruise right up, but since there were so many, I've just sped them along a bit. They ought to be gone in a day or two, but you'll probably be very sleepy while they heal. I've got a cream for those welts, but I'll put that on after you're all cleaned up."

Harry was shivering by now and already beginning to feel drowsy. He watched dazedly as Mrs. Weasley tapped the side of the tub to warm the water back up and then trailed the tip of her wand over the surface, leaving mounds of foamy bubbles on the water. A flick of her wand and they were slowly turning from icy white, to light blue and then to a pastel green and on. Harry couldn't help but perk up a little, eyes widening when he saw that.

Mrs. Weasley chuckled a bit. "My daughter always likes that," she told Harry, helping him over to the tub and into the water.

It was wonderfully warm. Harry could never remember being enveloped in something so warm and soothing before. His baths at the Dursleys were quick, harsh, scrubs from his aunt, usually after he was sprayed down with cold water. But this was wonderful. The water smelled like lavender and the foam tickled his chest and stuck to his chin like a beard.

The bubbles floated up and landed on his nose and he sneezed, making a ripple in the sea of foam. He giggled.

Mrs. Weasley smiled as she watched the little boy gather handfuls of color changing suds and run his hands through the mountains and clouds of foam around him, looking delighted when they swirled in the water. The boy hadn't said one word to her, but this… watching him be so happy… it was better than a thousand words.

She took a cloth, poured a potion that would help with the stinging onto it, and began to wash Harry as gently as she could around the injuries. Every inch of skin was blackened or red or crisscrossed with scars. She kept up a steady stream of chatter as she gently scrubbed, but she couldn't stop the tears from leaking out of her eye and falling, unnoticed, into the bath water.

Harry was getting drowsy quickly though. He leaned against Mrs. Weasley's arm as she held him upright, sponging the last of the soap out of his hair. Mrs. Weasley could tell he was nearly asleep and half lifted him to his feet, keeping one hand firmly on his shoulder as she groped for the fresh towel and wrapped it around his shoulders before lifting him out of the tub. He was so small that the towel feel past his knees, even when she pulled it over his head to dry his hair.

"There you are," she said brightly, pulling the towel back like a hood so she could see his face again and the black hair that stuck up wildly like downy feathers on top of his head. Harry's eyelids were drooping almost closed and he tottered on his feet. "Let's get you back to bed before you fall over right here."

She lifted him, wet towel and all, into her arms, well used to getting soaked during bath time after seven of her own children, and pushed open the door. She felt Harry shiver as they left the steamy bathroom for the chillier air in the rest of the house, and wrapped the towel tighter around hi, rubbing his back gently. He was nearly asleep on her shoulder by the time they reached his bedroom a few steps down the hallway.

Remus was back, just as he'd promised, and was waiting in Harry's room. The moment they pushed open the door, he hurried over to them, looking anxiously at Harry slumped in Mrs. Weasley's arms.

"He's sleepy from the spells I had to use," she explained as Remus took him from her so that she could dry her clothes with a flick of her wand. "Have you got clean pajamas to change him into?"

"Yes, of course," Remus mumbled, laying Harry gently on the bed and hurrying around to the dresser to pull them out.

"Harry, Dear?" Mrs. Weasley said softly, gently shaking Harry awake. "We're going to put that cream I told you about on you now, alright? I'm very sorry, but it's going to sting a bit. Do you want something to hold onto?"

Remus snatched a stuffed tiger off a shelf and set it against Harry's arm. Harry lifted his arm to draw the tiger under the towel still draped over him and hugged it tightly to his chest, one thought in his foggy mind: preparing for pain.

Mrs. Weasley pulled out a small bottle and smeared some thick, pink cream onto a fresh cloth. Then she pulled back the towel enough to expose Harry's legs, and began to gently daub at the lash marks.

Mrs. Weasly expected some kind of reaction. Remus seemed to have, too, since he'd placed a comforting hand on Harry's back. But Harry didn't so much as flinch. Not a sound escaped his lips as Mrs. Weasley covered his legs and then his back and arms with the pink cream. Remus flung the wet towel out into the hallway and dressed Harry in the clean pajama bottoms, then sat him upright so Mrs. Weasley could get at his chest.

He let Harry lean against him, wrapping his arms gently around Harry's middle and murmuring soothingly to him, but Harry didn't even whimper.

The adults exchanged anxious looks as Mrs. Weasley buttoned the clean pajama shirt and Remus slid Harry between the sheets, tucking the blankets around the already-sleeping child. Tears were once more sliding down Mrs. Weasley's cheaks. She knew how much that cream stung and smarted. When she'd used it on the twins last summer after they'd gotten blisters from the rope swing in the back garden, they'd positively howled. And they were eight and it was just their hands.

So in habit with her own children, and with her heart breaking over him, Mrs. Weasley bent to drop a kiss on Harry's slightly sweaty brow before motioning to Remus to follow her out of the room. Remus stood reluctantly, gazing miserably at Harry's small, sleeping figure.

"Is he going to be alright?" he asked quietly once he'd shut the bedroom door behind him and the pair of them stood out on the landing.

"Physically? I don't think there'll be any lasting… serious debility," Mrs. Weasley answered, choosing her words carefully.

"There's nothing I can do about the scars though. They've already healed like that. Even some of the worse lash marks will probably leave new scars. I can't heal anything too quickly, there's too much damage, his body couldn't handle it," she explained grimly. "I've just sped up the process considerably. He ought to be fine in a day or two, but he'll probably sleep most of that. It takes a lot out of a body that size to mend so much so quickly. And it doesn't help that he's malnourished."

"It's not your fault, Remus," Mrs. Weasley interrupted before he could even open his mouth. "You've only had him for a few days. Malnourishment takes much longer than that to set in so strongly and it will take much longer than a few days to fix. But you'll need to keep a close eye on his diet. Be sure he's getting everything he needs and start him off small. It doesn't look as if he was used to regular meals before he came here. You saw his ribs, didn't you? I'd guess he hasn't shown much of an appetite since you got him?"

Remus shook his head, wondering how this had never leapt out at him before. He'd known Harry was too skinny and didn't eat much, but never had he guessed as to _why_.

"Check on him every hour or so and wake him up to drink some water now and then and make sure he eats something later. Just soup is probably all he needs, but see to it that he eats. He'll probably run a fever, too, until the healing begins to wind down. He already felt a bit warm. Keep an eye on that. If it gets any higher than a hundred degrees or if he starts throwing up, send for me. Or if you can't wake him up or anything else off happens. I don't think he'll have any sort of reaction to that cream or the spells, but you never know."

Remus nodded, wondering if he shouldn't be writing down what she was saying.

Mrs. Weasley heaved a great sigh and looked back at Harry's bedroom door. "Will be okay, though? I'm not sure, Remus. I don't know how anyone can live like that for five years and be 'okay'."

"Me neither," Remus mumbled, the sorrow and guilt from last night washing over him once more, mixed with the fury from his report to Dumbledore just half an hour before.

"I'll come by tomorrow," Mrs. Weasley told him, running a hand over her face and looking exhausted, despite the early hour in the day. "We may need to bandage some of those worse marks…"

"Thank you so much for this, Molly," Remus told her once again as they started down the stairs to the fire. "I know it's not what you signed up for when you and Arthur offered to help…"

"It's quite alright, Dear," she assured him. "We're glad to help."

She gave him a watery smile before dipping her hand into the tin of floo powder and vanishing into the emerald flames.

Remus sagged onto the couch, burying his face in his hands. He did not know how long he'd sat like that before muffled whimpers and cries from upstairs had him bolting up the stairs.

**A/N: So what did you think? It ends a bit cliffy, I wasn't expecting that, but hopefully it's not too bad! I feel like there's something I wanted to explain, but I can't think what it is… Well, if you have any questions, feel free to ask! As always, reviews are amazing! **


	10. Getting Worse Before it Gets Better

**A/N: I'm back! Yup, here's another chapter. 100 reviews guys? THAT'S AMAZING! Thank you so much! I never thought I'd get this much response for this story! Sorry I made you wait so long for this chapter! It's here now! I hope you like it! It sort of wraps things up here so we can move on to the next hurtle. **

Harry twisted in his blankets, clawing at the tentacle-like grip they had around him. He was too hot. His skin felt like it was burning. The dark room (Mrs. Weasley had drawn the curtains) disoriented his foggy brain and he felt rather ill. Confused images swam in front of his eyes, carrying over form fevered dreams. Flashes of green light and someone calling his name in a dark forest… other things he couldn't recognize or remember, but which left his heart pounding. And then suddenly there was nothing underneath him and he was falling, smacking into the ground with a thud, still tangled in blankets.

"Harry? Harry!"

Someone was beside him, trying to pick him up, and Harry thought he could hear the thundering footfalls of his uncle or that high cackling voice that haunted his nightmares, and he struggled all the harder. One of his knees came up and smacked him in the mouth, his flailing hand scraped against the underside of his bed. A shadowy figure loomed over him.

"Harry! Calm down, it's alright."

The voice was soothing and familiar and something in it made him stop fighting. Harry lay limply on the hard wooden floor, tangled in sheets and panting hard.

"It's alright," the voice was saying and suddenly Harry realized that it was Remus who knelt beside him.

Cautiously, Remus scooped Harry up and lifted him back onto the bed. Harry whimpered softly as the movement rubbed his pajamas over the welts Mrs. Weasley had smeared that stingy paste over. He wished she hadn't. They hurt ten times worse with that on them. He felt Remus push his bangs back and lay a cold hand on his forehead. Harry shivered hard at the cold touch and Remus pulled the blankets back onto the bed and tucked them around Harry again. Then he sat down on the edge of the mattress.

"How do you feel?" Remus asked.

Harry considered the question. Right now how he felt was to hot and too cold and too achy and too tired to explain it all, so he stayed quiet, gazing blearily up at Remus in the dim light from the hallway.

"Are you thirsty?"

Remus raised his wand and a few seconds later a cup soared through the open door and into his hand, but Harry was too disoriented to marvel at the magic. Another flick and the cup was full of water. Remus helped Harry sit up and held the cup to his lips. The water was delicious and Harry lapped at it eagerly, until he inhaled some of it right into his lungs and started coughing. Remus set the cup down, and grabbed a tissue to wipe away the water that had spilled down Harry's chin and chest.

"Let's try again," Remus coaxed as he helped Harry slide back down in bed. "How do you feel? Hot, cold, hungry, sick?"

Harry shrugged. All of it really. He just wanted to go back to sleep. Sleep made it all go away, that was one thing Harry knew better than anything. Sleep made it all go away.

"Tired," he mumbled.

"You probably will be very tired for a while," Remus nodded. "But I've got to keep waking you up so you can eat and drink and so I can take your temperature."

Harry barely heard him. His eyes were already drifting shut, confused visions swirling in his mind. He rolled over and pulled the sheets up over his head, and Remus got up off the bed. But something was off. Harry couldn't tell what it was, but it made him uneasy. He rolled back over, breathing hard as the welts all over his body seared. Then he realized what it was and struggled against the sheets to sit up. Helios wasn't on his bed like _always _was, yowling and making Harry sneeze five-hundred times before he could fall asleep.

"What's the matter?" Remus asked worriedly, turning quickly back to the bed.

"He-Helios," Harry panted, "Where is he?"

He wasn't sure why, but suddenly it seemed very important. He was worried

Remus pushed Harry gently back down and left his hand lightly on the boy's shoulder.

"Helios is fine," he assured him soothingly.

"But what's going to happen to him?" Harry insisted breathlessly.

"I thought Mrs. Figg might like to take him," Remus explained.

"Oh," Harry choked. He could not explain the tears that were suddenly slipping down his cheeks. He wasn't going to miss Helios and Helios wasn't going to miss him and he was extremely relieved that it was the cat that was going and not him, but still the tears streamed.

"Hey, it's okay," Remus soothed, sitting back down on the bed and pulling Harry into his arms. "Helios will like going to Mrs. Figg's, and we can even go visit once in a while if you miss him so much."

Harry shook his head, sniffling as more tears cascaded down his cheeks. "I – I'm S-sor-ry," he hiccoughed.

"Whatever for?" Remus asked, looking down at him in bewilderment.

"Y-you ha-have to give your c-cat away – because of – because of me," Harry sobbed, his little body shaking violently in Remus's arms.

"Oh Harry," said Remus, smiling sadly and tightening his grip on the little boy. "It's okay. Shh… It's okay. It's not your fault."

"But it is," Harry sniffled miserably, running the back of his hand under his streaming nose. "It's because of m-me that he-he's got to go away."

"Is it your fault that he makes you sick?" Remus asked, tipping Harry's face up to look into his swimming eyes. "Hmm? Is it?"

"N-no. I guess not," Harry mumbled.

"Exactly. Having him in this house makes you ill, and your health comes first, understand?" Remus said firmly, but gently. "He'll be fine with Mrs. Figg. Don't you worry about that. You just worry about feeling better, alright?"

"Alright," Harry repeated obediently.

Remus plucked a tissue from the box beside Harry's bed and wiped the tears off his face with it, then handed Harry another one for his nose, which didn't seem to want to stop running.

"There now. Think you can get some sleep?" he asked, helping Harry slide back under the covers.

Harry's eyes were closed before the words were out of Remus's mouth.

XxXxX

Remus woke Harry up around noon to make him eat some soup. It was challenge. Harry didn't want to eat anything was so exhausted that Remus had to hold him upright and spoon the soup into his mouth like he'd had to do when Harry was a baby.

The rest of the day Remus spent cleaning as quietly as he could. He was amazed at how much cat hair there was everywhere and was surprised Harry had been able to breathe at all with it all floating around.

Helios was not thrilled about being stuck outside and spent a great deal of time yowling at the backdoor until Remus, afraid he'd keep Harry awake, put a silencing charm on him. Helios shot a furious glare up at Remus and disappeared into the brush after that.

Around five in the evening, Remus was pulled from his work by a small, horse voice calling his name from upstairs. Leaving the couch cushions he'd been cleaning scattered on the floor, Remus hurried up to Harry's bedroom.

"What's up?" he asked, pushing the door wide.

"I feel yucky," Harry mumbled, moaning softly as Remus sat down on the edge of his mattress and his stomach swooped with the movement.

Remus was instantly anxious. He lay a hand on Harry's sweaty forehead, frowning at how hot it was.

"What kind of yucky?" Remus asked with concern.

"My tummy…" Harry groaned, breathing in quick little gasps. The room spun dizzyingly.

Remus reached over and turned the lamp on to get a better look at him and Harry whimpered at the bright light. A moment later he rolled to the edge of the mattress and retched.

"I'm sorry," Harry choked, trying to sit up and casting scared looks at Remus.

"It's alright," he murmured, rubbing soothing circles into Harry's back.

Remus vanished the sick with a flick of his wand and helped Harry sit up against the pillows. Then he handed him the cup of water from the bedside table and instructed him just to rinse his mouth and not to swallow, summoning a basin for Harry to spit into. He raised his wand to Harry's temple and muttered "_Therma Revelio" _

Harry flinched away from the luminescent red numbers that hovered an inch above his brow, blinking at them dazedly as they dispersed into nothing.

"101.7" Remus muttered, worriedly feeling Harry's forehead again. "I think we better get Molly."

XxXxX

Mrs. Weasley bent over Harry, a hand on his forehead and crease between her eyes. It was nearly nine o'clock. Harry had drifted in and out of sleep, staying coherent just long enough to take a few swallows of water only to be sick a half hour later. His fever wavered, going down a few points of a degree only to creep back up again. He couldn't hold down any of the potions Mrs. Weasley gave him for very long.

He had finally slipped back into sleep for the moment, and Mrs. Weasley straightened up. Remus stepped forward from where he'd been hovering against the wall, looking very worried.

"Is he – "

Mrs. Weasley put a finger to her lips and ushered him out of the dimly lit bedroom, leaving the door cracked so they could hear Harry's heavy breathing.

"What's wrong with him?" Remus asked in a hush.

"I've told you," Mrs. Weasley said patiently. "It's just side effects from the healing I had to do. There might have been deeper damage than I thought and it's just hard on his body, that's all."

"But you said he shouldn't have gotten sick like that," Remus objected, pushing the door a little wider so he could see Harry's pale, drawn face against the pillow.

"Well, things were a bit worse than I expected, but as long as we keep a close eye on him, he'll be fine," Mrs. Weasley said calmly.

"He can't even keep water down," Remus pressed. He'd been growing more and more anxious by the hour, more than a little freaked out by his first real glimpse of an ill child. It was scary. Yes, Remus Lupin, werewolf and veteran of the last war, admitted that seeing Harry so sick so suddenly was one of the scariest things he'd ever faced. It was just that the little boy was so… well, _little_. And Remus was the one responsible for him, and he couldn't do anything to make him better.

"Children take fevers hard, but they get over it quickly," Mrs. Weasley told him. "So long as you keep a close eye on it. Ron got the flu just before Halloween and he couldn't hold anything down for three days, but then the fever broke and he was fine by the next morning. Give it a little time. If he's still this sick this time tomorrow or if he gets much worse, we'll send for a mediwitch."

"Alright, alright," Remus agreed, taking a calming breath. "I suppose you ought to be heading home," he added, glancing at the hall clock with regret and more than a little fear.

"Yes, I ought to," Mrs. Weasley agreed. "Ginny's a handful to put to bed when I'm not around to tuck her in and Ronnie was in tears from the twins when I got home this morning. You'll be fine, Remus," she added comfortingly, patting him on the shoulder. "Just do what we've been doing all evening. Stay with him until the fever breaks. Either sleep in his room or bring him into yours."

"Right," Remus mumbled.

"He'll be alright. They're tougher than you think," Mrs. Weasley said bracingly. "And if you need anything, send for me. Don't worry about the time."

XxXxX

The night passed in a haze. Remus didn't sleep at all. He sat beside Harry's bed, checking his temperature and whipping his face with a cool cloth. Harry woke up every hour or so, sometimes mumbling or whimpering form fevered dreams. Remus spooned water into his mouth like Mrs. Weasley had instructed and sometimes he held it down, sometimes he didn't.

Sometime around three in the morning Harry woke up crying, the healing welts were hurting him so much from all the tossing and turning. Remus pulled up his pajama sleeves and found a few of the worse ones looking bloody. He found some gauze in the bathroom and bandaged them as best he could, using the paste Mrs. Weasley had left.

It wasn't until the sky had begun to lighten that Harry fell into a heavy sleep and Remus was able to doze.

XxXxX

"Remus?"

The hoarse whisper jerked him awake in a second. Bright morning light blazed through the curtains, making them glow brightly. Harry's eyes were open, and he was looking at him intently from where he lay on the bed.

"Harry," Remus croaked, sliding off the chair he'd pulled over to kneel at the edge of the mattress. "How do you feel? Any better?"

Harry shrugged, tentatively pushing himself up on his elbows. Remus raised the basin beside him questioningly and Harry shook his head, swallowing. "Not sick," he muttered. "Just funny."

"Well, that's an improvement over yucky," Remus said lightly, pushing back Harry's damp bangs to feel his brow. "Your fevers gone down," he said, amazed by how casual his voice sounded when waves of relief were washing over him. "Think you can handle a little water?"

Harry nodded and lapped thirstily at the water in the cup Remus held to his lips.

"Easy there," Remus smiled, pulling the cup away after a minute. "Let's see how you do with that for now."

Harry pushed himself up into a sitting position, staring around the room dazedly, as if he hadn't seen it before.

"How does the rest of you feel?" Remus asked cautiously.

Harry blinked and looked down at himself. "Alright," he said, but Remus didn't miss the wince when he ran a hand over his chest.

"Are you sure?"

The little boy shrugged.

Remus carefully unbuttoned his pajama shirt to look at the injuries himself. He sagged with relief when he saw the fading bruises that had, only a day ago, been dark and black. The welts were receding into thin, white scars, as well, although they still looked painful.

"Much better," he said, smiling at Harry. "Of course we'll wait until Molly gives her final opinion, but I'd say you'll be right as rain in no time."

Mrs. Weasley came back around midmorning to check on Harry. She was very pleased to find him sitting up, sipping juice and even happier to find the bruises fading fast.

"You'll be up and running around and wearing Remus out in no time," she told him, dropping a kiss on the top of his head. "But you gave us quite the scare last night, young man. You were awfully sick."

"I was?" Harry asked quietly, glancing shyly up at the woman.

"Oh yes. We were awfully worried about you. But you're doing much better now. And why don't we try to keep it that way, hmm? You'll have to stay in bed until tomorrow morning, I think, but after that you can get up if you've got the energy."

Mrs. Weasley stayed a little longer, talking to Harry as she redid the bandages on his arms. Harry didn't talk much. His eyes were already drooping by the time Mrs. Weasley finished.

"You just get yourself some sleep, now, dear," she said gently, tucking the blankets back around him. "I'll be back to check on you tomorrow, so mind you rest up."

XxXxX

Harry's fever broke for good that evening. He managed to keep down some dinner, and Remus managed to catch up on his sleep while Harry slept soundly, though he dragged a camp bed out of the closet and slept on the floor of Harry's bedroom rather than going into his own room.

The next morning, Mrs. Weasley pulled off Harry's pajama shirt to reveal only pale scars left to mark his skin. It was by no means a happy sight, but both she and Remus were exceptionally glad to see it.

"I can get out of bed now, right?" Harry asked timidly.

"Yes, love, you most certainly can," Mrs. Weasley said, giving him a watery sort of smile.

Harry spent most of the day on the couch, sleeping or looking at picture books, still lacking energy or much of an appetite. Remus sat with him, reading to him or playing games of I-spy (something Harry had never played before and was thrilled with) to pass the time.

Remus was surprised how happy he was just to see the little boy smiling and looking not quite so pale.

"Remus?" Harry said hesitantly that afternoon.

"Hm?"

"Can I ask you something? Did – did you stay with me when I was sick? All night?"

Harry looked embarrassed at the question, a faint pink rising in his cheeks.

"Of course," Remus smiled. "Like Mrs. Weasley said, we were worried about you."

"Did you sleep in that chair?" Harry asked quietly.

"Sort of. I didn't get a lot of sleep, but neither did you."

"I'm sorry," Harry whispered. "For being so much trouble."

"You're no trouble at all!" Remus exclaimed, though being careful to keep his voice soft. "You've nothing to apologize for, Harry. I was glad to do it. That's what adults are supposed to do when children are sick; take care of them."

Harry nodded.

"Thanks," he whispered, throwing a look at Remus. He shifted on the sofa as if he wanted to nestle into Remus's side or something, but stayed where he was, carefully apart from Remus, shoulders hunched and head down.

"You're very welcome," Remus told him kindly, pulling Harry onto his lap.

**A/N: What did you think? I used degrees F, I know. It should be Celsius. I could have converted it, but I'd already had Mrs. Weasley say in the last chapter "if his fever gets above a hundred" so I figured I ought to be consistent. Just consider it the 'Americanized' version. Sorry! **

**Well, now we can more or less move on to resuming ordinary life. That is, falling into routine with work and school and things. Now I have a very important question. When Harry starts going to school, I've been wondering if he should meet one of his muggle-born classmates, like Hermione or Dean. I know what I think about it, but I just thought I'd see what you all think. It doesn't necessarily mean that he would be friends with them, but I wondered if you might like to see a young Hermione since the Weasleys will eventually all come into the story. Just an idea. Please let me know what you think! **


	11. First Day

**A/N: Hey! I'm back again! :D Okay, so this is one of those, not much really happens chapters. Sorry, the good stuff is still to come, but I thought I should at least post somehting. So here is the first part to the next section of the story. Laying gorund for the actual events if you will. Nothing too dramatic,.. not yet anyway. I also decided to put a poll up on my profile to see who I would add in. I refrained from adding Hermione or Dean or someone else this chapter just to see what the numbers said. I think a lot of you seemed happy about the Hermione suggestion, but I just want to see what the numbers say. So please go vote on my poll, even if you've already told me! :D Thanks!**

Harry watched Remus's fingers nimbly button up his bright red jacket with a blank sort of look. Remus glanced at his expression and offered a reassuring smile.

"Don't worry so much. It's never as bad as you think it will be. You might even like it."

Harry raised his eyes to give Remus a doubtful look. Today he started school again. And no matter what Remus said, Harry's dread was not assuaged. He wished he could just stay here in Remus's house until he was all grown up. Remus was smart. He had a lot of books. He could teach Harry everything there was to know.

Remus finished the buttons and moved down to swiftly weave Harry's shoelaces into neat bows with a practiced hand. "There you are," he said, straightening up and giving Harry one more look-over to see that his collar was straight and his face was cleaned. He eyed Harry's wild hair, but, remembering James's efforts with his own hair, decided not to waist anymore time. "Well, that's everything, I think. Shall we get going?"

Harry didn't answer, but mutely hauled his new frog backpack onto his shoulders, pulled the knit cap Mrs. Figg had sent him in low over his eyes, and shuffled to the door. Remus watched him with a mixture of amusement at how nerdy Harry managed to look (not that it mattered much in year two most kids looked weird that young anyway) and worry at how apprehensive he seemed to be. Harry had hardly said two words since dinner the previous night. Remus had tried for the last few days to get him excited about going to school, but the more he talked about it, the more anxious Harry seemed to get.

He hoped it would be okay. In truth, he was leery about the whole situation. He had only had Harry for a week, but for some reason it was almost painful to send him away, even if it was just for the day. He was also nervous about what might set Harry off. Remus had no idea to what extent abuse like that had done to Harry, nor what accommodations to ask the teachers to make for him. He had spoken to a woman from the guidance office of the primary school Harry would be going to and explained the situation as best he could to her, but he couldn't tell her what sort of things Harry might be sensitive to. As the woman said, they would just have to see what happened and go from there.

Remus pushed open the door and caught Harry by a mittened hand, making sure he didn't stumble on the rutted front path. Remus didn't have a car and doubted he'd be getting a license anytime soon. For one, he was not at all confident in maneuvering all of those levers and gauges that commanded those two-ton beasts. For another, the Ministry had to provide all the paperwork necessary to apply for a license and he had not had a lot of good experiences with the Ministry since Delores Umbridge gained power.

It didn't matter though. He could apparate into town near the library where he worked and Harry would ride the bus to school and home usually. But today Remus wanted to walk him to his classroom, meet his teacher, make sure he was alright before he left him alone for the first time. So today they walked the few miles into town.

The November air was brisk and the hint of an icy edge nipped at their skin, but the weather had not yet turned to winter. The pair of them walked along in silence for a good half of the journey. Remus kept glancing down at Harry, expecting to have to carry him the rest of the way, but Harry trotted doggedly alongside him. Remus attempted to strike up conversation, asking Harry about what subjects he liked to study or if he liked art classes or music classes, trying in some way to build excitement in the little boy, but nothing he said yielded an answer more explicit than a shrug or a mumbled word or two.

As they neared a point in the dirt road that met up with the paved highway, however, Harry said abruptly, "They don't like me at school."

Remus looked down at him in surprise, but Harry was looking shyly at the ground, embarrassed at his admission.

"Of course they will! You haven't even met them yet," Remus told him confidently.

Harry shook his head. "No, they don't like me. No one did. Not even the teacher. They thought I was weird."

"Harry, I'm sure that's not true –"

"It is," Harry interrupted, looking up at Remus with earnest eyes.

"Well," Remus began again, not sure what to say to that. "Well, this is a new school with all new people. I'm sure they'll like you quite a lot once they get to know you."

Harry looked dubious. "I don't think so," he said quietly. "I'm the new kid. People pick on the new kids. They don't like them just because they're new. There was a boy – Billy waters – he came to our class last year and people said he smelled funny and that he ate a blue crayon during art time and other things like that – but he didn't. I sat next to him 'cause no one liked to sit next to me either and he didn't smell funny and I asked him about the crayon and he said he didn't eat it, but he thought Dudley might have. But everybody thought he ate the crayon and so they wouldn't play with him or they'd make him be 'it' at tag and then pretend like he never caught them, even though I _saw _him get Linda _and _Michael. That's what they'll do to me."

Remus was slightly astonished. Harry hadn't volunteered that much information freely… well, ever. And the worst part was Remus wasn't sure how to allay his fears because he couldn't tell Harry none of that would happen. He knew firsthand how difficult kids could be, but somehow he hadn't thought that attitude developed until they were older.

"Well, kids get over it," Remus said, sounding lame even to himself.

Harry didn't act as if he'd heard and Remus couldn't blame him.

"Look, that Billy Waters, was he still the new kid the last time you saw him?" Remus asked.

Harry glanced questioningly at him, but shrugged. "Guess not."

"Exactly. Kids get used to you and suddenly you're not new anymore, you're one of them. You'll see. I'll bet you'll have loads of friends in no time."

Harry shrugged, but didn't object. He didn't bother to mention his certainty that that wouldn't happen. He hadn't been any newer than the rest of the kids at his old school, but they hadn't liked him at all there either, and that hadn't gone away. He supposed there was no Dudley here to lead the teasing and chasing, but there was surely someone just like him. And Harry knew he was still weird. He would still make magic happen and just because he knew what it was now, didn't mean the rest of the kids wouldn't still think he was a freak. No, he couldn't see at all how this school would be so different from the last one.

He stumbled a little, his muscles tired from all of the walking and Remus, as though he'd been waiting for the cue, bent down and scooped Harry up into his arms, backpack and all, without even breaking stride. Harry tucked his head in the crook of Remus's head and closed his eyes, worrying his lip between his teeth. The jeers of his old classmates echoed in his head from just two weeks ago and his stomach squirmed with nerves at facing something like that again.

He didn't like being around people he didn't know. At least with people he knew, like his aunt and uncle, he knew the score. He could keep out of their way. But with people he didn't know….

"It'll be alright," Remus murmured soothingly, practically feeling the anxiety emanating off the little boy through his tense muscles.

It took them another ten minutes to reach the edge of town and Remus decided to catch a taxi for the last few blocks. He remembered why he didn't walk into town more often now; it was a _long _walk.

Harry eyed the imposing brick school building through the cab window. It seemed to loom at him, rushing up out of the city for several blocks before the car rolled to a stop at the curb. Harry sat frozen in his seat, waiting for Remus to come around and open his door, trying to hold onto that metal-and-glass barrier between him and the hordes of shouting and squealing children he could already hear.

But Remus barely took five seconds to yank open his door and unbuckle his seatbelt. And then he was pulling Harry from the car, leading him up to the gate and through the swarm. Harry pressed himself close to Remus's side, eyeing the children, most of whom seemed much bigger than him, warily. His breathing was fast and he could feel his palms sweating. The damp smell of the playground seemed sharper in his nose, the bright colors of the coats darting in and out of the crowd seemed more lurid against the dull, muddy November playground. A bell sounded shrilly as Remus led the way up the front path towards imposing double doors and Harry nearly jumped out of his skin at the sound.

"It's alright," Remus told him calmingly out of the corner of his mouth, dropping Harry's hand and putting his arm around the little boy's shoulders instead.

Harry looked away from the crowd of children and focused on the path in front of him. He was relieved to pass through the doors into the sudden hush of a hallway before the bell has rung to bring students bustling and clamoring into the school.

"It looks nice," Remus tried to say jovially, indicating the finger paintings hanging on the walls and the bright posters about reading and math and things like that.

Harry gulped, the familiar school-sent making his nerves jitter.

"This must be Mr. Lupin!" a voice called from down the hall, making Harry jump and whip around. Remus squeezed his shoulder reassuringly and turned to meet the man walking toward them with a friendly smile.

"Headmaster Jennings?" Remus asked, offering a hand. Mr. Jennings shook it vigorously, beaming at Remus.

"It's fantastic to meet you! And this must be Harry! Hello there," Mr. Jennings switched his beam to Harry, who edged a little behind Remus, looking up at the stranger with wide eyes.

"Go on, Harry, it's alright. Shake his hand," Remus urged, but Harry stayed peeking out from behind his legs. He wanted to do as he was told, but he couldn't seem to make himself move.

"He's a bit shy," Remus said apologetically.

"That's fine," Mr. Jennings said amiably as another bell sounded, making Harry jump again. "Here comes the rush. Better get into a classroom before the kids break down the doors."

He led the way down the hall a little ways and pushed open a door with a large red two on it just as the first wave of students stampeded through the front doors.

"Hello Miss Arvis!" Mr. Jennings called, knocking on the opened door. "I've got a new recruit for you!"

A woman looked up from a desk across the room. She was youngish and pretty with brown curls bouncing like springs around her face and sparkling blue eyes. She smiled at them.

"Hey there. So this is the young Mr. Lupin?" she asked, peering kindly at Harry.

"Er, no. This is Harry Potter," Remus corrected awkwardly. "I'm Remus Lupin, but, this isn't… that's to say, he's not my son."

Miss Arvis flushed a bright red, looking mortified. "Oh, I'm sorry! I just glanced at the papers and saw your name and assumed – I shouldn't have, I'm awfully sorry."

"It's quite alright," Remus assured her, feeling heat rise in his own face. He supposed he'd have to be explaining that a lot if Harry got to stay with him for any amount of time and it had reminded him with a pang of Lily and James when he'd said 'not my son'.

"Right, well, my name is Miss Arvis," Miss Arvis continued, still blushing. "I'm glad to have you in my class, Harry. I'm sure we'll get along just splendidly."

Harry looked timidly up at her.

"Well, I'll let Miss Arvis take it from here," Mr. Jennings said, rocking on the balls of his feet. "There are just a few more papers to sign, Mr. Lupin, if you want to come down to my office before you leave. Last door on the right. I hope you have an excellent first day, Harry," he added, giving one last genial smile before disappearing, dodging past a group of excited young girls darting into the classroom.

"Now then, here's where you'll be sitting, Harry," Miss Arvis said, leading them over to a desk in the second row beside the window where a large sticker in the shape of a pencil read HARRY in capital letters. "You'll keep your coat and your bag in a cubby back here," she walked to the back of the room and indicated an open cubby in the corner with a matching nametag proclaiming that it was now Harry's. "Every morning you'll play outside until the first bell rings. That bell means you're to get into a line with the other children in your class. When the second bell rings you're to come into the building in an orderly line, find your cubby, and place your things in it. Then you'll find your seat and when the last bell rings, we'll start class."

Harry nodded, uncomfortably aware of the other students, who had all filed into the classroom by now, watching him with curiosity, some whispering behind their hands already. He noticed a blonde boy snicker something to his friend and was sure it was the beginning of the crayon rumors.

Remus helped Harry take off his coat and hang it up with his backpack in the cubby as Miss Arvis explained where everything was in the classroom and the rules associated with each item.

"Children, please get out your workbooks," Miss Arvis ordered, noticing all the eyes on Harry and Remus. The children reluctantly turned away from the strangers and began shuffling through their things, chatter breaking out as usual.

Remus bent down in front of Harry and put his hands on Harry's shoulders. "Well, I've got to get going. I know Miss Arvis won't have any trouble from you. It'll be fine," Remus assured him again when Harry nodded without looking at him. "You'll see. You'll like it."

Harry shrugged, then suddenly looked up at Remus, his eyes a little wild. He threw a nervous glance over his shoulder at Miss Arvis and leaned in to whisper, "You'll come get me, won't you? At the end of school you'll come and get me, right? I don't have to walk all the way back to your house do I? I don't know the way! I'll get lost!"

"Of course I'll be here to get you when school's over," Remus soothed, running a hand through Harry's messy hair. "You won't ever have to walk home by yourself. I'll be waiting right outside to pick you up when the last bell rings, how about that?"

"Promise?" Harry whispered.

"Promise," Remus said solemnly.

Harry relaxed a little. "Okay. You won't leave me here?"

"Absolutely not." Remus drew back, reluctant to leave, but Miss Arvis was hovering behind Harry and the rest of the children kept sneaking glances at them over their shoulders. "I'll be here to pick you up. And if you have any trouble, you call me at the library. Miss Arvis has the number, she can dial it for you, alright?"

Harry nodded.

"Good. Now I'll see you this afternoon. Have a good time," Remus hesitated. The protocol would be to hug the little boy, but Harry already stood rigid and jumpy, so Remus squeezed his shoulder one last time and stood up. "Goodbye, Miss Arvis. It was nice meeting you."

And Remus forced himself to turn and walk out of the room past the whispering students, feeling quite as nervous as Harry.

**A/N: I know this wasn't a lot to go on, but please leave a review anyawy! And vote on my poll! : D I hope I'll get a chance to update soon, but graduation is coming up so... Thanks to everyone who reviewed the last chapter! You guys are all so wonderful! Promis things will get moving soon! :D Also, let me know what sort of things you'd be interested in seeing! I've got a general outline, but I'd like to know if there's an avenue you would like to see explored. Nightmares? Phobia? Etc. The werewolf thing will definitely come up as will, of course other things that go along with emotionally and physically abused children, but I like suggestions too! :D **


	12. Worms

**A/N: I'm finally back! Okay, so first, sorry about the poll. It was an epic fail on my part. It wasn't really necessary, though, so it wasn't the end of the world. ;D Now I'd like to say, because a few people have been asking, that NO, this is not a bashing story. I love all the HP characters, even the bad guys (although that's more like love-to-hate :D). I think Dumbledore's marvelous really, but for this kind of story, well, you have to be a little mad at him. He is manipulative, you have to admit that, but not in a heartless way, if he can help it. I think he really cares about Harry, but he has an entire world to worry about. Also, I love all the Weasleys and we will definitely be seeing more of them! And while we're at it, I love Hermione too. **

**To RUMO415 I looked for you, but I couldn't find you! Sorry! No, I don't do evil fics. :D **

"Where'd you come from?"

"How come your dad came into school with you?"

"What's wrong with your head?"

The questions came the moment Miss Arvis let them outside for recess. Harry suddenly found himself at the center of a small knot of kids clustering around him curiously. He felt heat rushing up in his face and tried to shuffle back a few steps, but the group just pressed in closer, jumping at anything new in their routine environment.

"I – what – not my – " Harry stammered, struggling wildly to find answers and force them out of his mouth. He was finding it hard to breath under the avid stares of his classmates and was hugely relieved when Miss Arvis came over to see what was going on.

"Come on, don't squish Harry now," she said, chivying the children along. "Go on and play. Why don't you show Harry how you play football? And Stephen, it's rude to ask questions like that!"

The little group scattered at once, the blond boy Harry had seen whispering to his friend earlier and who had asked what was wrong with his head (staring at the scar slashed across Harry's forehead) shot a smirk at him over his shoulder as he raced off with his friends. Harry didn't follow them. He backed up a few steps to press himself against the school building and watched the rest of the children running around warily. Miss Arvis noticed.

"Don't you want to go play, Harry?" she asked, coming to stand beside him.

He jumped a little bit and looked up at her, but said nothing. In fact, she had not heard him say anything all morning. Not since he'd whispered something to the man who'd brought him in. Miss Arvis was still trying to figure out exactly what relationship that man had to Harry.

"So, how has your first morning been here at White Field Primary School?" Miss Arvis asked, attempting again to coax some words out of the little boy.

Harry shrugged one shoulder, still looking up at her warily.

"That good, eh?" she asked, smiling slightly. "Well, I'm sure you'll settle in quite nicely. What sort of – "

But her next question was cut off by a cry of "Miss Arvis!" A girl Harry recognized from the seat in front of him came running up to them. She had a lot of bushy brown hair, rather large front teeth, and at the moment was streaked with dirt.

"Miss Arvis, Stephen stomped on my worms!" she exclaimed, looking quite indignant.

"Your _womrs_?" Miss Arvis asked, raising an eyebrow. "What on earth were you doing with worms, Hermione?"

"My science project," Hermione explained impatiently. "My dad says there's all kinds of worms and he got me a book that tells all about them and I'm going to make a poster all about them, but Stephen stomped on the ones I found today and now I can't draw them! He ought to go to the Wall. He did it on purpose!"

"Did not!" Stephen, who was sulking a few feet away, protested. He came forward a few steps. "I didn't _see_ them. Hermione's a tattle-tale."

"I am not, I told you they were there!" Hermione said snippily.

"I didn't _see _them!" Stephen insisted.

"Enough of this," Miss Arvis cut in. "Stephen, whether you saw Hermione's worms or not, you need to apologize."

Stephen muttered a quick sorry before dashing off to rejoin his friends. Hermione looked unsatisfied.

"He did it on _purpose_!" Hermione repeated, looking up at Miss Arvis indignantly. "He should be in trouble."

"I'll talk to him," Miss Arvis assured Hermione. "Hey, I've got an idea. Harry, why don't you help Hermione with her project? Don't you think that might be fun?"

"He doesn't know anything about worms," Hermione said at once. "He wouldn't know what to do. Besides, I don't want help. I like doing posters alone."

"Hermione," Miss Arvis said with a hint of warning. "Haven't we talked about working with others? Harry's new here and he doesn't know anybody. You ought to include him."

Harry didn't think drawing worms sounded like very much fun, especially since it was recess. Why was this girl working on school work during recess? But he could tell, just like Hermione, that neither one of them had much of a choice in the matter.

Hermione looked at him appraisingly. "All right, but he better do it just as I tell him."

"Hermione," Miss Arvis said again. "We've talked about being bossy, too."

"Yes, Miss Arvis," Hermione said, looking a bit embarrassed. Then she turned to Harry. "Come on, I'll show you my station."

She seized his wrist and dragged him away across the playground.

"That Stephen Morris!" Hermione huffed as she marched towards the fence on the other side of the playground. "He did it on purpose. He always does! Yesterday he kicked a ball right across my papers and got mud all over them and last week he stole my eraser and wouldn't give it back and when I told Miss Arvis, he said it was his and she believed him because he wrote his name on it in marker!"

Hermione raged away, not seeming to care if Harry was listening or not. She talked rather quickly and didn't need to seem to breath quite as much as normal people.

"Here it is," she said, stomping abruptly at a patch of mud near the fence. "This is my station. Those are my drawings and that's my book and those are my pencils. You can help me dig up more worms since Stephen stomped on the other ones."

Harry quickly found out two things about Hermione as he helped her dig through the mud for worms: First, she was very bossy, and second, she didn't need to rely on a second person to keep up a conversation. The first thing he didn't like so much because it meant she was always correcting what he was doing and making him do things over, but the second thing he didn't mind at all because it meant he didn't have to think of things to say or answer questions.

By the time Miss Arvis called them all in, Harry had found three new worms for Hermione to draw and both of them were smeared with dirt. Harry hadn't realized how messy he'd gotten until Miss Arvis sent the two of them to wash their hands and he caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror.

And almost at once, Aunt Petunia's voice, shrill and irritated, screeched in his head, "You aren't coming into this house looking like that, boy! We give you clothes and you go and ruin them playing in the mud! Honestly, you could be a little more grateful for what we've done for you! Vernon, get the hose!"

Someone poked him in the back and Harry jumped so badly he nearly smashed face-first into the sink at the back of the classroom.

"Class is going to be starting, hurry up!" Hermione hissed and Harry nearly flew out of the way so that she could use the sink, whipping his still-soapy hands on his muddy jeans.

Hermione stared at him. "You're supposed to use the towels," she said, handing him a paper towel from the dispenser. "What's the matter with you, anyway? You look odd."

Harry turned and hurried back to his desk, sinking as low in the chair as he could and avoiding everyone's eyes. He wondered how angry Remus would be with him for getting his clothes all dirty. Probably not as mad as Aunt Petunia, he tried to assure himself, but the idea of making Remus angry at all was enough to make him feel slightly sick.

Harry was glad when it was time for lunch. He had tried to pay attention, but between worrying about getting his clothes muddy and the way Stephen Morris (who sat next to Hermione) kept whispering to his friends during work time and looking over at Harry, he had found it hard to concentrate.

He stood on tiptoe to reach the zipper on his backpack and pull out the lunch bag Remus had packed for him that morning, and then turned to see what the rest of the class was doing. Miss Arvis was chivying them into a line at the door, so Harry joined the back behind a girl with red braids. The girl looked at Harry and then at his paper-bag-lunch and scrunched up her face. She turned hastily to her friend.

"Switch spots with me, Gwen, I don't want to be near it!" she begged.

Her friend looked around curiously, saw Harry, and shook her head. "Neither do I! What if they start crawling out?"

Gwen gave a little shriek and pushed at her friend, trying to get as far away from Harry as she could. Harry stood there, turning red and wanting to ask what they were talking about, but unable to open his mouth.

"I'll switch with you," a boy halfway up the line called back. "I don't mind 'em."

He was a little fat with a lot of orange freckles all over his face, a big nose, and bushy eyebrows, and he wore a shirt with a green alien on it. He waddled down to where the red-haired girl was and she scuttled away, throwing one last nervous glance at the lunch bag in Harry's hand.

The boy had already started his lunch waiting in line. He stood munching loudly on a carrot and staring interestedly at Harry.

"Can I see 'em?" he asked after a few seconds of Harry fidgeting uncomfortably.

"Er, see what?" Harry asked nervously.

"The worms," the boy said eagerly. "I heard you eat worms for lunch, that's why you were helping Hermione at recess. I heard you ate one for a snack."

"No!" Harry exclaimed, disgusted and panicked. "I don't – I didn't – I don't have _worms _in my bag!"

He opened the bag and the boy leaned over to look for himself. He looked disappointed.

"Aw, Stephen was lying," he said to Gwen.

"Was not!" Stephen said form behind Harry, making him jump. "He mashes 'em up and puts 'em in his sandwich, I bet. Bet he drinks bug juice, too."

"Ewww!" Gwen squealed, but the boy looked excited again.

"I don't!" Harry protested, turning around to look at Stephen. "Stop telling them that!" he begged, but Stephen was leering.

"I _saw _you eat one," he grinned. "Didn't you, Lionel?" he asked, turning to one of his friends. The boy nodded, grinning stupidly.

Harry opened his mouth to protest again, but Miss Arvis was calling for quiet and the line was starting to move.

No one seemed to want to sit by Harry in the lunch room. He could tell just form the disgusted looks most of the class was giving him and his lunch that they had all heard what Stephen was saying about him and believed it. Hermione was the only one who didn't seem to care, but maybe that was because she was too engrossed in her diagrams.

Harry thought about trying to sit next to her, but decided he didn't want to spend his lunch getting his ear talked off about her science project. Also, she seemed like she might not _want _the company, the way her drawings were spread around the table, and he wasn't sure if he liked or not yet. And he didn't need to perpetuate the worm rumors any more. So instead, Harry found an empty place away from the rest of his class.

In a way, he was almost glad. He was used to eating by himself, after all. It was easier.

At recess that afternoon, Harry didn't help Hermione with her project. Stephen and his friends had been laughing and looking over at him the way Dudley and his gang used to before they started chasing him, and from long experience, Harry knew it would be best just to stay out of their way. He found a place under the slide that was relatively sheltered, but where he could still see Miss Arvis so he'd know when it was time to come in. He didn't stay near her in case she tried to make him play with Hermione again.

Harry spent the time outside trying to brush the dirt off his clothes, but it had already sunk into the fabric in muddy streaks. This only made him feel worse.

Harry didn't want to meet Remus outside of the school when the last bell rang and the rest of the class swarmed out the door to the busses. When Remus had left him this morning, he thought this time couldn't come quickly enough, but it was with trepidation that Harry dragged his muddy jacked on and pulled his frog backpack over his shoulders. He knew school wouldn't be any good at all. Everybody thought he ate worms and on top of that, he'd be in trouble when Remus saw him.

"Harry?"

Harry jumped. He hadn't realized Miss Arvis was standing a few feet behind him.

"Would you like me to walk you out to meet, er… Remus?" she asked.

Harry hesitated, then nodded, pulling his knit cap low over his eyes. Remus might not be mad right away if Miss Arvis was with him. She offered her hand and Harry took it, letting her lead him out of the classroom and towards the front doors.

"So, how was your first day?" Miss Arvis asked cheerily.

Harry didn't answer, to nervous and miserable to try to think of a response.

"How come you sat by yourself at lunch?" she asked, determined to get at least one word out of him today.

Harry just shrugged.

"I thought maybe you would sit with Hermione. You two seemed to get along."

Harry shrugged again.

Then Miss Arvis pushed the doors open and Harry saw Remus sitting on the steps. He turned at the sound of the doors and Harry froze. The logical part of him was telling him he shouldn't be scared, that Remus was not anything like his aunt and uncle, that he wouldn't shout and not let him in the house, but the rest of him was too busy remembering the Dursleys to listen to logic.

"Hello," Remus said, smiling at both of them. "How'd it go?"

Harry stood between Miss Arvis and Remus, staring down at his shoes and not saying a thing.

Remus looked uncertainly at Miss Arvis.

"That's what I've been asking him all day, but he hasn't told me a thing. First days are always hard," she added sympathetically. "It'll get easier. He'll loosen up."

"Certainly," Remus said, looking worriedly down at the silent child before him. "Should we head home then, Harry?"

Harry's answer was to take a few halting steps over to Remus, still looking fixedly at the ground. This did not ease Remus's anxiety. It had taken him the entire week he'd had Harry to get him to relax completely (or almost completely). Would that all be undone in just one day? He wondered what had happened. Nothing Miss Arvis seemed to know about.

Remus hesitated, but bent down and lifted Harry into his arms. Harry stayed tense, stiffening in Remus's grip.

"Thanks for walking him out to me," Remus said to Harry's teacher. "He'll be on the bus tomorrow. Goodbye, Miss Arvis."

Remus carried Harry all the way home. He could have gotten a taxi, but he didn't. It was a stupid reason, really, but it felt too much like last Saturday, when he'd first brought Harry home, and Remus was afraid that all the headway they'd made in the week since then would be erased. And the longer Harry stayed stiff and silent, the more he worried.

Maybe it had been too soon to start school. Maybe he should have kept Harry home with him longer, made sure he really was okay before he sent him off to school.

It wasn't until they were home and he was unbuttoning Harry's coat that Remus noticed the mud.

"How did you get so dirty?" he asked lightly as he hung Harry's coat up.

Harry didn't answer. He peaked shyly up at Remus, biting his lip. An alarming idea struck Remus and he knelt in front of Harry once more to look more closely at him, looking for scratches or scrapes he might have missed, pulling up Harry's sleeves and running a hand through Harry's hair.

"Did you fall during recess?" he asked, trying not to sound as anxious as he was.

Harry shook his head and Remus's stomach plummeted.

"Did someone push you?" he asked. "Did you get picked on?"

Harry shook his head again, and Remus stopped looking for injuries, relieved. "Then how'd you get all covered in mud?"

"D-digging for worms," Harry mumbled.

Remus blinked, then a grin broke out across his face. That was the most normal thing Harry had done since he'd been with Remus. He started to laugh and Harry looked up sharply, not sure if this was a good sign or not.

"I was helping a girl with her science project," Harry explained in a mumbled.

"That's excellent!" Remus beamed. "See? I told you you'd make friends."

But Harry shook his head miserably.

"Miss Arvis made me and she wanted to draw worms more than she wanted to talk to me," Harry explained. He had decided that Remus was not mad about the mud and felt rather stupid for being so scared. His logic was saying 'I told you so' very smugly to the rest of him. And suddenly his bottom lip began to tremble and he flung his arms around Remus's neck, burying his face in Remus's shoulder. He wasn't sure what possessed him to do it, but he couldn't get the way nearly everyone in his class had looked at all day out of his head.

And suddenly he found himself telling Remus everything. All about the worms and Stephen Morris and how Gwen and her friend didn't want to be next to him in line. He wasn't sure how much Remus had understood because he'd kept his face buried in Remus's shoulder, but Remus rubbed soothing circles into his back and listened until Harry had talked himself out.

When Harry had fallen quiet again except for ragged breathing as he tried not bawl like a toddler, Remus resettled him on his lap and looked down at him.

"Rough day then, eh?" he asked softly.

Harry nodded. Remus sighed.

"I know it must be getting old, but it will get better, I promise. If that Stephen boy gives you a hard time, you should tell Miss Arvis though, alright?"

"I don't want to be a snitch," Harry mumbled.

"If he keeps picking on you, you aren't snitching," Remus told him. "Come on, I've got the perfect cure for long hard days."

He set Harry on his feet and led the way into the kitchen, opened the freezer, and pulled out a carton of chocolate ice cream.

"What do you think?" he asked, setting it down on the counter and lifting Harry up beside it. "Before dinner and everything. Sound good?"

Harry nodded, and for the first time all day, a little smile broke out on his face.

**A/N: Yay, Remus makes it all better! So what do you think? Here's the deal with Hermione. I love her. I do. And Harry will too (as a sister only ;P sorry, but I'm cannon) but I built her personality off of how she first is during Sorcerer's Stone. That is, with not a lot of social skills. She's kind of a lot for Harry to handle right now I think, so they aren't going to be BFFs right away, but they'll get there eventually. **

**As for a few other points. Someone mentioned a love connection between Miss Arvis and Remus… well, that one you'll just have to wait and see. But I realized that there is an opportunity for Sirius to be let out of Azkaban seven years earlier than previously anticipated. The question is, would that be something I should do? I hadn't thought about it and what I have planned is mostly just Harry and Remus. I think Sirius might water down that story line. Plus I think he might really freak Harry out. An ex-prisoner fresh from Azkaban and an emotionally stunted and abused child do not seem to mix well. Even though I love Sirius and would like to incorporate him. I don't know. Tell me what you think! :D **


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